It has been a great month for Brazilian releases, with new albums from Moreno Veloso and DJ Dolores, and here’s another reminder of the continuing energy and invention in the country’s music scene. Lucas Santtana has his roots in classic Brazilian styles, but an international outlook. A multi-instrumentalist, he started out playing flute for Gilberto Gil, and on this wildly varied set he mixes acoustic and electronic styles, sings in three languages and plays guitar, synths and harmonium, helped by musicians including the great French cellist Vincent Ségal, who can also be heard on new albums by Kassé Made Diabaté and Piers Faccini. There’s a bit of everything here, from the easy bossa croon of Particulas De Amor and the brass-backed carnival song Mariazinha Morena Clara through to good-natured French rap, and lush English-language balladry, and he’s at his best with the cheerful electronic stomp of Funk dos Bromanticos.
