Need pepping up then Sao Paulo trio Caixa Cubo may help with the sharp grooved energetic funk of their new single Sábado. Channeling the racy pace and dynamism of their home city, Henrique Gomide (keys), João Fideles (drums) and Noa Stroeter (bass) never look back as they switch and swerve through this bustling jazz fusion/samba interchange. From snare intense beats, steamy bass pumps, swooning vocal pauses and slippery piano runs, Sábado gets you where you need to be.
It takes flawless precision to make music sound as alive and agile as this but Caixa Cubo show that they can deliver. Not that you would expect anything else from a band that last year released the buoyant breakout album Angela on Heavenly, a record that had people whispering Azymuth and Herbie Hancock comparisons as they warmed to Caixo Cubo’s fresh spin.
That whirl of momentum looks set to build soon with the band announcing their next album Agôra available from Jazz & Milk around 31st March. Signs are the group will be taking their strong foundations, introducing more vocalists (including established collaborator Zé Leônidas, nu-soul chanteuse Xenia Franca plus Jembaa Groove’s Eric Owusu) and pushing their crisp electric samba jazz through new dimensions.
Listen to the second preview cut, the atmospheric Ndiyakhangela to get a hint of these ambitions. Featuring South African duo Bongani Givethanks and Mpho Nkuzo it’s a fiery percussive pronouncement, part mystery and part magic, that drills down to those afrobeat roots. Sounds like Caixa Cubo’s story is about to get all the more compelling.
Pre-order your copy of ‘Agôra’ by Caixa Cubo from your local record shop or direct from: https://caixacubo.bandcamp.com/album/ag-ra-2
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