Céu: Not Your Dad's Bossa Nova

Her newest, 'Novela', continues her expansive take on Brazilian-infused pop

It's been around sixty years since the gentle, intricate rhythms of bossa nova sprang from the samba and other rhythms that formed the musical DNA of Brazil. The style, sound, and ambience of bossa were quickly exported to America and, in short order, around the globe, influencing jazz and pop music for all time. From there, Brazilian music has absorbed rock, psychedelic music, funk, and many other styles.

Right around the turn of the century there emerged a group of young musicians, producers, singers, and songwriters who sought to combine the cool sheen of bossa nova with the electronic music and dance music that was emerging across the planet, centered on club and rave scenes in places like Ibiza and Goa. In Sao Paulo, the Hungarian expat Suba immersed himself in the city's nightlife and got to know its DJs and performers, developing a name for himself while helping invent the new musical language of Brazilian electronica.

In 1999 Suba released Sao Paulo Confessions, a groundbreaking album that proved to be heavily influential not only in Brazilian music, but eventually worldwide. He also produced Bebel Gilberto's introductory album Tanto Tempo, but was killed in a late night fire at his apartment studio before the record was released. Tanto Tempo was highly successful, introducing Gilberto to American audiences and selling over a million copies.

Other Brazilian singers followed in Bebel's wake, releasing records that combined Brazilian music such as bossa, samba, and maracatu with various electronica influences--drum n' bass, dubstep, jungle, trip hop. Fernanda Porto released her eponomous album in 2002. Working with DJ Patife, she created what became known as drum 'n' bossa, and her track "Sambassim" became a hit in Brazil and a club hit in Europe.

Brazilian beats were also frequently used by the American electronic music duo Thievery Corporation, who have repeatedly expressed their admiration for Brazilian culture and the 1960s boss nova movement, which helped spread the aesthetic embraced by many artists who were actively creating music in Sao Paulo at the time.

In 2005 a singer and songwriter named Mariado Céu Whitaker Poças, who uses the professional name Céu, released her first album on the Sao Paolo-based Urban Jungle label. There's something incredibly pop-savvy and different about her record than any of the others being released at the time by young Brazilian singers. She claims such singers as Billie Holliday, Ella Fitzgerald, Lauren Hill, Erykah Badu, and Brazilian singer Jorge Ben as influences, and she also lived in New York City for a time, absorbing the sounds of hip hop and DJ culture.

Céu (the album) is both a stunning feat of studio glamour and a triumph of songwriting talent. On "Lenda" she is reminiscent of a California singer/songwriter, while "Malemolencia" and "Roda" make explicit connections to reggae, a connection strengthened by her superb Remixed EP, featuring remixes of tracks from her debut by Bombay Dub Orchestra, 1000grau Martins, Zaman 8, Eidtaker Encanto, and Instituto. It's a heavy dub remix, and some of these tracks leave their magic behind like a haze of weed smoke. I always imagine that this is the music listened to by William Gibson's alternative society Zion Cluster in Neuromancer.

Of course, the world was under the influence of these same electronic genres, from Ibiza to Goa, and compilations of world music combined with electro lounge and ambient sounds, such as the Buddah Bar compilations, were all the rage. So, in 2007 Céu's debut was released worldwide by Starbucks through its partnership with the See Hear label, played and sold in Starbucks stores, where it did quite well, and became part of the soundtrack for a lot of young urban hipsters' lives.

The pop music world continued its rotation, but in Brazil Céu was a big star, one of the biggest, and she released her second album, Vagarosa, to critical acclaim. Vagarosa is similar in aesthetic to the debut, with a strong emphasis on reggae and dub rhythms. There's less up front electronic and studio technique, though modern production is still quite present. To my ears one thing that Céu does on Vagarosa is to discover the power of her voice in overdubbed harmony. Instrumentally, the record provides more hints of jazz and the influence of European groups like Portishead.

On her third record, Caravana Sereia Bloom, it was as though someone opened up the studio window and let the world come crashing in. Produced by fellow Sao Paolan Gui Amabis, the singer is no longer awash in an electronic glow, but is backed instead by a rock rhythm section, horns, and distorted guitar. With songs inspired both by a road trip Céu made from Sao Paolo to Brazil's northeast and by the 1979 film Bye Bye Brazil, it's a tribute to the history of modern Brazilian music as well as a paean to wanderlust. As other writers have noted, the record shares the spirit of the original Topicalismo movement without sounding like a retro retread.

Many influences find their way onto Caravana Sereia Bloom, including chicha, a type of psychedelic Peruvian cumbia featuring electric guitar playing that is reminiscent of American surf rock. The northeast region that Céu traveled through is a dry, poor region of the country known as sertao, which can be translated as 'the backlands.' Brazil borders many countries through this region, including Peru, Columbia, and Suriname, and those living near either side are influenced by the music they hear and play, providing a rich sonic melting pot that Amabis and Céu make extensive use of.

It was four years before Céu reappeared with Tropix, and once again there were changeups afoot. Tropix is a more city centric sound, a real club album, full of dance grooves, fractured disco, a little new wave, and more. To achieve her vision the singer recruited keyboardist Herve Salters, who played with Femi Kuti, and drummer Pupillo as co-producers. Other musicians include guitarist Pedro Sa and bassist Lucas Martins. It's a gorgeous, highly-produced record that shows Céu developing into an international pop artist, influenced by cutting edge music being created not only across Latin America, but also the U.S., Europe, and Japan.

Apka! was released another four years later (2020), but it features the same musicians and producers (with the exception of one track) as Tropix. It is less clubby, representing an attempt to fuse the openness of Caravana Sereia Bloom with the studio hothouse atmosphere of Tropix. The addition of guitarist Marc Ribot on some tracks adds some new facets to this record. It's a strong album that demonstrates once again that Céu is headed on a trajectory that takes her out into the world and that she has by now synthesized all of these experiences into a unique style that makes you wonder how she's not a bigger star here in the U.S.

After the pandemic year, many artists took time to check their compasses, and Céu was no different. She recorded two albums in 2021. The first, Acustica, is made up of stripped down versions of songs from her other records. By stripped down, I mean that they feature only her voice and and guitar, with the occasional backing vocal of Lucas Martins. It serves as a reminder that Céu is a talented songwriter and that whatever production is put onto a project, the songs themselves come from her heart.

The other recording, Um Gosto de Sol, is a set of cover songs. Céu performs songs by Jobim, Joao Gilberto, and, of course, the title track by Milton Nascimento, but she also does some nice versions of songs by non-Brazilian artists. Her take on Sade's "Paradise" has  a swinging, jazzy energy that bubbles beneath the dreamy quality of Céu's vocals. She also does a version of Fiona Apple's "Criminal" that is slower and more languid. It's not without its charms, but it's less successful, in my opinion. Maybe the coolest track is a cover of Brazilian rocker Rita Lee's hit "Chega Mais." It gets a nice emphasis on the guitar riff and a clavinet-style bass line while Céu ably handles its pop-perfect melody.

It's been four years, the average time between albums for Céu, since Apka!, and here she is, right on schedule, with a record of new material, Novela. While her core group remains on hand (Pupillo, Lucas Martins) this time out she adds multi-instrumentalist, arranger, and producer Adrian Younge, known for his many collaborations as well as co-directing the Jazz Is Dead series. 

To this studio group, Younge adds horns and string sections, and there are many guests who appear on various tracks. Ladybug Mecca of Digable Planets appears on the opening track. On "Gerondo na Alta" she pairs with singer/songwriter anaiis.

Novela is aptly titled, because although the tracks vary widely in their individual sounds and influences, their execution and vibe create a very 'branded' record, one that bristles with late night, urban American sounds. It creates a unified album at a time when music fans are returning to the deep and enjoyable listening experience that a cohesive album can bring.

Céu is supporting Novela with a North American and European summer tour, a chance to see a really good live performer work over the breadth of her extensive repertoire.

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