Ebb and Flow

Ebb & Flow is Brazilian singer and guitarist Célia Vaz's experimental album. Four cuts pair her with a septet from Rio and the other six with A.P.E., an electronics and drums trio from London. Adrian Corker, Paul Conboy, and percussionist Nigel Shipway understand the subtleties of samba. They take great pleasure not in updating older styles of Brazilian pop and jazz, but working around them, leaving the original flavor of the country's music intact as they bring into it shimmering, subtly shaded electronica. The noir-ish samba of "Na Fábrica," which opens the album, full of drift, glissando, and space, is an excellent case in point. Likewise, the organic cuts are intoxicatingly beautiful, such as "Obrigado Donato" and "Teles e Temas," where the weave of Vaz and Marcos Amorim's guitars wind around her breezy, airy voice and Marcelo Martins' flutes and saxophones, all stitched through with earthy percussion. Of all the recordings that combine older styles of the country's popular music with the sounds of modern jazz and electronica, this is the only one that really accomplishes anything. Nothing is watered down on Ebb & Flow, and nothing is heavy-handed; it's all grace, elegance, and quiet sultriness evoking another era.