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Os Mutantes

Os Mutantes

1968

Buy At Rough Trade
Os Mutantes
Album Summary

Os Mutantes is the debut album by the Brazilian tropicalia band Os Mutantes. It was originally released in 1968 by Polydor and blends traditional Brazilian music styles with American and British psychedelia. The album includes a cover of The Mamas & The Papas' "Once Was a Time I Thought", translated into "Tempo no Tempo", and a cover of "Le premier bonheur du jour", previously recorded by Françoise Hardy. It was reissued in 1999 on Omplatten Records and again in 2006 by Omplatten's (and Polydor's) parent company, Universal Records. The album has received critical acclaim around the world, and was put at #12 on Mojo magazine list of "50 Most Out-There Albums of All Time". It appears at number 9 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of 100 greatest Brazilian albums of all time. It is also listed at 39 on Rolling Stone's "Top 40 Stoner albums". It also appears at number 9 on the Rolling Stones's 10 Greatest Latin Rock Albums of All Time.

Wikipedia

Rating

2.96

Votes

12581

Genres

  • Rock
  • Psychedelic Rock

Reviews

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Mar 30 2023
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5

This is you: “Sgt. Pepper’s is so psychedelic. The sounds on that record are totally kaleidoscopic and vibrant.” This is me: “Bat Macumba ê ê! Bat Macumba obá!”

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Jul 20 2021
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4

This is the kind of weird shit I signed up for

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Jun 02 2021
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5

I listened to this album twice. The first time I quite enjoyed it but felt it was one of those albums that needs to be given more time to grow on me. The second listen opened up some of the melodies and rhythms and allowed me to pick apart some of the various styles and influences. Overall, I think that this album is criminally overlooked. We would do well to get outside of our Anglo-American concentration and see how what we are familiar with influences and has been influenced by what we are not familiar with.

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Aug 18 2021
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5

This is one of those albums that makes you stop and wonder “where have you been all my life”. Every song get more interesting as you listen harder. Really superb arrangements and instrumental/production choices lead to an amazing psych rock album. I’ll definitely be listening to this again- and I’m ashamed to have never heard of it until now. Into the Brazilian psych rock rabbit hole I go!

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Apr 14 2021
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4

Many people would be surprised at how open Brazilian musicians are to fusion with different styles. When I travelled to Brazil over the years I was fortunate to befriend a couple of music buffs who took me to some excellent concerts that demonstrate the wide variety of sounds. So the fucked up distorted riffs fused with samba in A Minha Menina seem par for the course. Some of this LP is wacky and wonderful while other bits are completely ridiculous. In the latter category is Ave Genghis Khan. It is so disjointed with insane riffs and I get the sense that even if I knew Portuguese the lyrics would still be meaningless. The name Ave Genghis Khan is ridiculous enough to make me rewind to Track 1. I love this album! 

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May 10 2021
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5

A surprising find; an classic psych album I had missed and probably dismissed at some point because it wasn't in English. Right up my alley musically. I only wish I could understand the lyrics

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Oct 04 2023
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5

I normally can't stand weird and psychedelic shit, but I guess all you need to do is put it in Portuguese and I'm all in.

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Nov 08 2021
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5

orgulho brasileiro totalmente inusitado

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Sep 13 2021
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5

I love this record. It's super psychedelic. I bought a reissued vinyl of this last year. I got into them when a current band I like (Chicano Batman) name-dropped them. It's really pretty music with some crazy production. I think this is a group of artists - not really a traditional band. Which is also cool.

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Oct 10 2022
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5

Wow! This is opening new channels in my brain. I want my art to be as free as this music makes me feel. There's all these things coming in and out - there's a dirty guitar, then a sweeping synth, a "doo bee doo" pop vocal, samples of a dinner party, switching genres on a dime, all while somehow creating a cohesive set of songs. A remarkable creation, I'm hungry for more where that came from.

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Apr 22 2024
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5

Future editions should cut every English and American psychedelic album from 1966-1970 and replace it with a repeat of this. It was a really weird experience to look at the cover of this and think “Oh God, more of this,” and then actually listen to it. It has a lot of the musical trappings that make the last five hundred sixties psych album on this list sound similar, but it also sounded creative and fresh and worthwhile and interesting. I can’t believe how sick this was! I can’t believe I had to listen to an entire record by the Zombies to get here!

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Apr 21 2021
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5

4.7 + The breadth of experiments with sound and the depth of playfulness, is what made this album an instant favorite, and which rewards frequent returns.

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Feb 11 2022
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5

Batshit crazy. And awesome. Like the soundtrack to some bananas euro-arthouse movie you keep falling asleep in.

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Aug 24 2021
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4

Very experimental and needs time to get used to. Weirdly catchy. It's quite a cohensive album so it's hard to pinpoint a favourite song because the songs blended together for me and I can't remember which song was which. Le Premier Bonheur Du Jour is a tentative favourite for now. It was also difficult to know when one song ended and the next began simply because for some of the songs like Panis Et Circenses the first half of the song sounds very different to the second half. The distorted guitar (or whatever the instrument is) was a bit jarring at times.

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Jun 12 2021
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4

Weird and wonderful quirk factory. The Cuica is fast becoming one of my favourite instruments.

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Apr 14 2021
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3

This album was really out there, psychadelic Brazilian folk music and I hear influences from the Mamas and the Papas, Zappa and Beatles. This one is quite dense and very inventive so I think it will get even better with repeated listenings.

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Feb 25 2024
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3

Brazilian clown music. Like a mix of the Beach Boys and Syd-era Pink Floyd. One of the more interesting 60s psychedelic albums I've heard, mostly because this one actually made me feel like I ingested something illegal. Also one of those albums that gain from the mixing sounding like it was done through transmissions to the ISS. The contrast between the standard 60s vocals and the guitars that are so distorted that they sound like a table saw is very unique and cool. I like it.

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Mar 29 2024
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2

How bad does an album have to be before it’s good? Who gave them the keys to the sound affect cupboard? Was that a kazoo solo? Have a band ever formed because of their musical differences? Is it any wonder Brazil has a drug problem? I’m really not sure what the hell I’ve just listened to, but I couldn’t bring myself to skip any of it, I was completely transfixed. So it can’t be a 1 rated album if it’s generated this level of wonder.

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Sep 22 2020
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1

This is so dated and not in a good way. Too late for a first listening. Points for originality, but way too busy and all over the place. That was probably the point but just seems annoying to me. Nice song titles.

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May 29 2021
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5

La fusión que podría esperar de brasileños con lo psicodélico, experimental, ¿qué género es esto? La verdad es que la pasé bien, lo escuché dos veces y la segunda se me hizo más divertido, hay muchos sonidos por acá y de repente hasta parecen canciones de un musical. Es como un disco lúdico, pero visto en su momento, no sé qué tanto se sentía así o si era realmente serio. Sin duda, tengo un sesgo porque me emociona que nos toque algo que no está en inglés y de los sesenta, pero pues qué buena música nos tocó. Mis favs: "A Minha Menina", "Adeus Maria Fulô" y "Trem Fantasma". 9.5/10

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Jan 05 2023
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5

Y'kno, I might just be tired enough to where this *really* clicked with me. It's fucking bizarre, isn't it? Sounds like a time capsule simultaneously from the past and future, or some sort of alien music (doesn't hurt I can't understand a word of Brazilian Portuguese). It's got pop hooks, it's got weirdness... like strange cousins of the Beatles, who got heavier into acid. Absolutely love it. Favorite tracks: "A Minha Menina", "Adeus Maria Fulô", Tempo No Tempo", "Baby"

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May 21 2024
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5

That is what psychedelia should be: weird and musical.

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Oct 17 2022
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5

What did I just listen to? Loved it.

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May 17 2024
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5

The gems I'm looking for from this list

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May 28 2021
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4

What a joy! I see multiple plays of this album in my future. Could eventually see myself going back and bumping this one up to a 5, but I can't just hand out 5's like they're tic tacs.

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Sep 03 2021
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4

Fun album but unlikely I'll find myself back here again

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Jan 21 2021
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4

Feeling like im in a Mexican restaurant

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Jan 19 2022
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4

Wacky psychedelic Latin album. At first listen, I thought it was all over the place and I did not like it and was glad when it was over. At second listen, I still thought it was all over the place, but I enjoyed it a lot more and at times could not suppress a stupid smile appearing on my face. I'm confused.

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May 19 2021
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3

Very 60s, I liked some of the songs. It sounded a bit Sgt. Pepper's-esque. Good background music but a bit too psychedelic depending on the mood.

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Mar 01 2024
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3

In some respects, this is like the Byrd’s album we just listened to…. Not my cup of tea necessarily, but the music was significantly better in my opinion. Certainly understandable why this was considered an all-time class stoner album! Would’ve thought a little bit more highly of it had they not used some odd flares in their music, like the whistle that, for me, simply served as a distraction from the song. But all in all, good music.

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Jul 23 2021
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3

I like it for it's progressiveness. It's an incredibly forward thinking album and should most definitely be put on a shelf next to Revolver and Sgt. Pepper's, but that being said, the language barrier as well as some of the more avant-garde parts distance me from liking as much as I think I should. Highlights: 1, and 8.

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Feb 13 2022
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2

Odd but not necessarily in a good way

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Sep 26 2024
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2

The good thing about this album project is that I get to discover music I didn't even know was my thing. The bad thing about this album project is that I get to discover music I didn't ever want to know was a thing.

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Sep 05 2024
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2

Feels like it was made by the ghost of a monkey

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Mar 01 2024
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1

So – this was interesting – and NOT in a good way… Again – not sure why this was on the 1,001 list, but c’est la vie… I do love me some Brazilian Jazz – so think Joao Gilberto, Astrud Gilberto, Antonio Carols Jobim, Gilberto Gil, and Bebel Gilberto – but this was NOT that… Appears to be an experimental album, combining psychedelia with Brazilian music – so other than trying that combination of sounds, there isn’t much here to like – and the recording quality was not the best either – but then again, it was 1968… There are 2 covers on this album as far as I can tell – “Baby” - which was written by Caetano Veloso (i.e. actually think Bebel Gilberto’s version is the definitive version of this song…), and “Tempo No Tempo” – as Mamas & Papas cover, and both are just a mess – as is most of the album… There were only 3 songs that were worth listening to – “A Minah Menina” – which as some really cool, and edgy guitar work for its time in it… “Le Premier Bonheur Du Jour” – which was more along the traditional French/Brazilian line – with hints of British influence… “Ave Gengis Khan” – the albums closer – which is by far the best track on the album, as the piano and drum work on it is really well-done for the period… And again, some pretty solid guitar work for the period on this one as well… The ending is sorta reminiscent of the end of the Yes classic – “Yours Is No Disgrace” – just not nearly as cool, or as well done… Would have gotten a better rating if more of the experimentation was more of this ilk… Maybe a 1.25 based on the decency of those 3 songs and my mood, but definitely a 1 star for me…

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May 06 2024
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5

Cant play this album without thinking about Cincinnati in 2006. First Internship with My uncle Mark and grandfather. Living on liberty hill for the summer with Drew David and John. Definitely one of the most fun summers of my life.

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May 02 2024
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5

have listened to this album so many times

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Oct 06 2022
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5

Classic. Havent listened to this in a long time

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Dec 17 2020
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5

Fantástico, produção incrível, especialmente pra época. Uma mistura de rock, psicodelia, pop, lirismo... PROG excelente

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Sep 22 2022
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5

Me re sorprendió esto 😮 enseguida lo volvi a escuchar.

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Apr 28 2021
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5

świetny album, im dłużej go słuchałem to coraz bardziej mi się podobał, super brzmienie, bardzo ciekawe instrumentarium, wpadające w ucho melodie, nietuzinkowe wokale i oryginalna zabawa muzyką, na pewno będe do niego wracał. Baby, senhor F i le premier bonheur du jour chyba moje ulubione tracki

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Jul 22 2022
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5

Being in Portuguese I didn’t understand the lyrics. But if they are half was decent this is the best psychedelic rock record I’ve heard.

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Mar 24 2024
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5

ahead of its time is the first thought i can give this album. seriously, with some of the processed effects i'm hearing... this was the 1960s! it's very surprising. an interesting amalgamation of tropical and surreal, blending all sorts of genre influences from north america, south america and europe. brilliantly odd. a treat of an album.

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May 19 2024
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5

Finally. Something that gets us to travel outside of the anglo-dominant music world! This is delightfully weird, all over the place, exploded and inventive. It just packs a lot in its 37 minutes, so much so that to fully digest it one day is not enough. The voices, the guitars, all go to some pretty strange places that I know nothing about. It travels in time and space, dreams of freedom and tenderness and fury. It welcomes and celebrates life at every turn, inviting nature as part of its choir of voices. I will have to come back here. This is the kind of record I am grateful for - something I have been hearing about for a long time without getting around to actually listen, and that pushes me out of my comfort zone.

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Apr 12 2024
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5

Supergenial! Und das zu der Zeit!!!!

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Mar 13 2024
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5

This is a great example of why I’m doing this. I’d heard of Os Mutantes, and maybe heard a track or two, but didn’t know anything about them. So glad this popped up. I really loved this album. I love that you didn’t really know what sound would pop up next, but it was always fun. I will be definitely be listening again!

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Jan 25 2024
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5

I've come across this album before in other charts and of course "A Minha Menina" is a classic in any genre. Generally I've always liked any music from Brazil (from Astrud, through Mutantes even to Sepultura) and this album has a real ambience to it.

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Apr 24 2022
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5

5/5. Musically innovative and wild and very ambitious for its time. Couldn’t ask for more 👍

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Apr 23 2021
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5

This is great! Really enjoyed it, would like to have it on while sipping a beer in the hammock

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Jan 18 2024
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5

this was a very interesting album. Not something I would listen to often or probably again. Remind me a bit of the Zappa.

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Jan 05 2024
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5

This was a wild experience definitely a new fav especially fucked up.

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Dec 30 2023
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5

10/10 some of the coolest psych-rock I’ve ever heard

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May 09 2024
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5

Good of course. Like no other music.

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May 10 2024
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5

Wow! Never heard this album, nor this artist or any of their music. Incredible that this came out when it did, instantly added to my library.

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May 03 2024
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5

Holy shit this is awesome!!! It sounds like I’ve always imagined cocaine feels.

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May 10 2024
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5

Ephemeral, weird but overall deeply interesting and enjoyable

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Apr 17 2024
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5

Your favorite has been rendered irrelevant within the first 5 minutes of this album, and your girlfriend got salmonella, now DANCE! bitch...

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Feb 11 2021
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5

Loved it. listened to it......then immediately listened to it again

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Dec 19 2023
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5

Os Mutantes are a giant swole doge, looming over the whimpering lil cheems doge of US & UK psychedelic bands - they sound so much more vital and experimental than most bands in this space! Fave tracks - love their versions of "A Minha Menina", "Baby", and "Le premier bonheur du jour". Also really like "Panis et Circenses" and "Trem Fantasma"!

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Dec 07 2023
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5

Opinionated and weird. Love the energy. This band set out to make a thing, and they definitely made a thing.

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Apr 01 2024
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5

I heard about this album in high school when I was obsessed with a lot of the Elephant 6 bands (for many of whom this is a direct inspiration). I mean, it's an absolutely classic psychedelic rock album in my book, more joyful than The Doors and more obtuse than Sgt. Pepper's. It's a 5 for me even though I rarely listen to it any more, listening to it again today was a joy. Probably aught to listen to it more.

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Oct 20 2023
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5

I loved that slab of weird. Even through all the weird it still grooves and is easily accessible

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Dec 27 2023
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5

Een van de beste Braziliaanse albums, dat niet per se bossa nova oid is. Sgt peppers maar dan Zuid Amerikaans. Qua genre schiet het heen en weer, blijft leuk om te luisteren.

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Dec 01 2023
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5

Another brilliant Brazilian album that I didn’t know that I needed in my life…but I definitely do!

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Mar 08 2024
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5

Os Mutantes are a brilliant psychedelic band from Brazil. Their self-titled album is a collection of fun, experimental songs that garnered world-wide attention. They embraced elements of American and British psychedelia - distortion, feedback, and a range of instruments and styles. The result is very entertaining, and a great example of the experimental music that arose our of sixties psychedelia.

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Jan 31 2024
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5

It's a weird mix of Brazilian folklore, acid pop and musique concrète, but I love it! Sure going for Os Mutantes' later albums

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Sep 13 2021
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5

A pretty awesome album. Breath of fresh air. Pretty sure they are singing in Portuguese, so that’s cool. And the instrumentation is everything

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May 09 2023
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5

Ég hafði heyrt Baby oft og verið hrifinn, en hin lögin voru full random fyrir minn smekk við fystu hlustun. Önnur hlustun var allt önnur upplifun og betri og sú þriðja var best. Frábær plata, random hljóðeffectar, svakalegur fuzz gítar og og skemmtileg lög.

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Apr 05 2023
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5

Loved it. Sounds fresh compared to the constant flow of British rock this project has been feeding me.

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Dec 19 2023
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5

Ahh this is so much fun and so timeless! Faves: A Minha Menina, Adeus Maria Fulo

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Sep 09 2023
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5

Highly experimental psychedelic record with plenty of hooks and sick riffs and other cool tricks that'll keep you coming back. There's no end to it's inventiveness. And honestly, the only albums I can think of that match it is stuff like the United States of America s/t, but this executes their ideas and is much more accessible. Whimsical at times, dreamy in others, uses musique concrete to blow away audiences with sudden yet smooth transitions within songs themselves. A landmark of the tropicalia movement that got me into exploring all sorts of Brazilian rock. Every track is memorable and leaves an impression with their own quirks that make every second of every song a fun time. I have tripped to this before, and I'm guaranteed to do it again.

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Mar 23 2023
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5

você, precisa tomar um sorveti *LIUUUP* na lanchoneti

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Feb 17 2023
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5

I've been a fan of this album for a long time. Amazing tropicalia psychedlic album. Super fun and catchy. 5/5. Standout Tracks: Panis Et Circenses, A Minha Menina, Adeus Maria Fulô, Baby, Bat Macumba, Trem Fantasma, Tempo No Tempo, Ave Gengis Khan

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Nov 30 2022
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5

Loved this. Some of the instrumentals made me think of the weirder end of the beach boys.

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Sep 10 2023
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5

you have to get used to the sound but it's a great album... this is why I am confident to finish all these albums because with every 10 boring or mid albums there is one great new find

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Jan 26 2023
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5

the Beatles Brazilian cousins took me on a journey that has changed me forever. I loved it so much

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Nov 09 2022
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5

This is one of the essential pieces of Brazilian music, and I cannot give it less than five stars. All the influences from psychedelic rock and Brazilian traditional rhythms like samba are here, making an impressive album with a lot of poetry in its lyrics. I love this album!

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Jun 25 2023
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5

This was a surprise treat! Brazilian psychedelic rock with bossa nova influences. This hit the spot in a way I wasn’t expecting.

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Aug 04 2023
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5

Man, I was psyched to see this one show up today. Twenty years ago, I heard Bat Macumba on one of the Nuggets compilations, and it was such a standout track, I had to go find more by these guys. Eternally glad I did. I just love their joyful, chaotic psychedelic madness. Great songwriting, creative and fun arrangements, nice harmonies. I love the crazy left turns these songs take. Great stuff. All Os Mutantes albums are great.

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Jan 20 2022
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5

Tribalismo lisérgico, guitarras distorsionadas y rotura con la tradición brasileira. Pop y samba retrofuturistas con la única ambición de empatar y hacerte volar. Alucinante en todos los sentidos.

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May 28 2024
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5

Here’s a deep cut I’d never heard from an amazing year in music. Genre bending, psychedelic, and experimental. It’s not flawless but it gets 5 stars from me - because it’s just the kind of treasure I hope to find among in the 1001. Enjoyed it and will return to it!

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May 27 2024
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5

This is some excellent South American, 60’s, psychedelic music! A really cool album diverse and complete, I didn’t always vibe with every song, but when they were good, they were GOOD. The language barrier didn’t matter as the instrumental and atmosphere were very strong. A clear 5

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Oct 28 2022
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5

A fantastic and surprising good with lot of personality and a good mont of crust

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