São Paulo Confessions is an album by the Serbian-born musician Suba—his musical account of life in that humid, foggy, and manic megalopolis. Core musicians on the album are then 21-year-old vocalist Cibelle, and veteran percussionist João Parahyba; additional musicians include mangue band Mestre Ambrósio, and guitarists Roberto Frejat (then frontman of Barão Vermelho), Edgard Scandurra of Ira!, and André Geraissatti, and vocalists Katia B., Taciana, Joana Jones and Arnaldo Antunes.
WikipediaI'm taken completely by surprise. I don't understand one word of this album, but it's one of the best recommendations so far! It's not perfect, but some of it is absolutely fabulous! First track was rough, but it picked up quickly. Great chill music.
Hypnotic and seductive. Interesting atmospheres that are simultaneously textured and smooth.
Dark, smokey, sultry. Rainy, late night mood music. Reminds me of Burial, and some of the darker, more ambient projects that came out of vaporwave (see 2 8 1 4). Favorite tracks: "Sereia", "Antropofagos"
Very Island Outpost. Very Samba. This is such a snapshot of like the electronic, chillwave, house music scene of the late 90s. It is retrofuturistic, and oddly optimistic. 5 stars no comment.
Taken me a few days to digest this album, but Iv come to the conclusion this is an absolute masterpiece, no idea what any of the vocals mean but the whole ambience of the album is absolutely brilliant, some of the later songs reminded me of billie ellish, feel this must of be some sort of influence therefore still sounds so fresh in 2022.
Samba-type music - took me back to Rio. Great music for either working to or chilling on the lanai.
Really fun and easy listening. Fantastic Brazilian flair. Nothing negative to say about it.
I really enjoyed this. It's kind of like atmospheric world jazz or something. Pretty smooth.
Never heard of this or him. Really enjoying it. A little dated, but still sounds great, and nowhere near as dated as other electronic music from this time can be. Reminds me of some of the chill down psychedelic trance circa Northern Exposure, with bossa nova lilts and beats. Gets much more of the latter than the former after the first couple of tracks (although noone can say it's lacking in bossa from the off!), I really dig this. As others have said, good working music vibe also. Getting a 5 because its the first NEW thing this has introduced to me in a while that I've really enjoyed.
Det är album som detta som gör listans genomgång värdefull. Så bra... Tanke: Brasilien drar ut det bästa ur typ alla artister... kanske Ny Batteri borde fara dit och skriva+spela in en EP...
This is a welcome discovery - never heard of Suba! Getting a lot of Thievery Corporation vibes from it. It's been quite a while since I listened to any Thievery Corporation, but this maybe sounds better? A bit less plastic, a bit more authentic. Will definitely be revisting. Fave track "A Noite Sem Fim" for that awesome twanging noise. "Samba Do Gringo Paulista" had some great percussion lines, too....
Chilled out Balearic vibes here… needs to be listened to on a Sunny beach!!
fantastic percussion, and overall i loved the production on this, but sometimes the electronic sounds were really annoying. had a cool atmosphere, really made me imagine being in a big city at night. 7/10
Really intriguing sound, I enjoyed all of these songs. Tragic that he died so young.
Never heard of this guy - and really enjoyed this one. Bossa nova with a slightly experimental twist that stops it being muzak
This is it! Update of the 60’s/70’s Bossa Nova, beautifully integrating elements of ambient electrinica, acid jazz and trip-hop. Very smooth and well produced. Music perfect for cocktails in a late night lounge bar, and just as well for an espresso on a Sunday morning on a sunny balcony or in a street café… Music to Dream to
trip hop style lounge muzak, but in a good way. Good background music. Liked it
What a sweet album and wonderful global downtempo feeling throughout. Finding music like this is one of the reasons I love this project!
Oh, my, this is great! Soooooo silky smooth without being schmaltzy. Really cool beats. Love the vocals.
quite different to most albums on here, bit of samba and axe - with that late 90s worldwide take
This was more fun than I expected. Bonus points, it's nice to see the authors find an electronic album from this decade that wasn't British.
After listening to a fair amount of Brazilian music through this project, I feel as though this album is able to further incorporate it into popular music, this time with a more electronic downtempo base. The result works very well and I enjoyed it quite a bit. Unfortunately, the music does tend to slip into the background and the album itself is a touch too long.
One of the reasons I am loving this challenge, is the exposure to music from other cultures, across the world. It is very exciting to get something that I am unfamiliar with. Overall I am enjoying this album and will definitely give it another listen down the line.
What a wild mix of bossa nova, electronic and jazz. His life story seems really interesting too, although tragic. I'm happy I learned about this.
After a week of enduring Britney and Madonna albums, it's refreshing to hear something non-commercial music that has way more substance and credence than a bunch of overrated pop-tarts. A very nice listen with beats that had me dancing in the kitchen and bobbing my head. Did I mention how refreshing this was? Enjoyed it a lot! Not for everyone's tastes, but same goes with Madonna.
Awesome little collection of vibes. It feels like the granddaddy of so many staple sounds and grooves on those "24hr lo-fi chill/study" channels. I don't know enough about the genre or its history to speak confidently there but it definitely slots perfectly into the same space within my head, and I enjoyed it in the same way I enjoy those. Excellent, if somewhat subdued, music that can live comfortably in the background of the venue it's being played in, but is complex and interesting enough to call itself to your attention for its brightest parts. Some odd musical choices here and there interesting enough to make you turn your head, nod along, and go "Oh wow." Special shout-out in that department to the discordant guitar cords in A Noite Sem Fin. Bold and intriguing, I loved it. I'm not always in the mood to just sit back and vibe, but when I am? A little of this on a rainy day, some hot tea... Brother that's living.
Starting out listening to this album, I really thought I was going to get bored of it as it went on, but it stayed really interesting. It mixes in a lot of different instrumental styles. This is one I could see myself buying 4/5
Love this. Always a fan of Bossa Nova, this spare electronic accompaniment is sublime.
This is possibly the greatest bar album of all time and should have been released on Mo Wax in the late nineties. Though I can't help but think of it as music to drink Corona to, it's pretty fantastic.
"São Paulo Confessions" is a studio album by Serbian-born musician, composer and producer Suba (Mitar Subotić). The randomizer was kind giving me this album a week after Bebel Gilberto's "Tanto Tempo," an album which Suba produced in the same time frame. Whereas the Gilberto album had some songs with more samba/bossa nova beats, this Suba album is more downtempo/chill and electronic. Born in Belgrade, Suba was awarded an international fund for a folk/electronic fusion album where he did research of Afro-Brazilian rhythms in Brazil and enjoyed it so much he eventually emigrated to Brazil. Besides the aforementioned downtempo/chill and electronic musical categories, this album also incorporates Latin and jazz influences. A number of Brazilian musicians and singers contributed. Great production on this album. Unfortunately, Suba died just as this album was released from smoke inhalation during a fire as he was rescuing various recorded tapes. "Tantos Desejos (So Many Desires)" starts things off with airy/dreamy keboards. Percussion. Definitely chillwave. A women singing. Interesting noises. A club-like feel. The Brazilian band Mestre Ambrósio helps out in "Antropófagos (Cannibals)." A deeper groove with the percussion. Electronic keyboards giving laser, bubble, jungle sounds. Softer keys layered on top. More dance-like. A cover of the Antônio Carlos Jobim/Vinces de Moraes "Felicidade (Happiness)" adds a bossa nova/samba beat-song to the mix. Enjoyable. A reverb electronic noise begins "Sereia (Mermaid)." Distorted percussion. Vocalist Cibelle comes in. More airy keys. Great production. A heavier rhythm percussion drives "Abraço (Embrace)." The keboards and guitar gives this more of a rock sound. A women initially is singing and then Arnaldo Atunes comes in with spoken word. Interesting. This album was a good listen. Great production. Both this and the Bebel Gilberto albums are worthwhile listens. It's very evident the talent of Suba and very sad he never saw the success of these two works.
I had not heard of this album and it was much better, and deeper, than I expected.
I had to listen to this twice to give it proper attention. It was quite far out of my comfort zone, but I would definitely listen again. Weird and wonderful. Hectic latíno electronics. It was rocking all the right boxes, but there were points where it all got a bit too crazy.
Always happy on the rare occurrences when something I've never heard of shows up on this list. Those albums end up, more often than not, being interesting and worth listening to and learning about and this is no exception. It's a great mix of Electronic, latin, and acid jazz influences and jsut vibes really well for the whole 62 minutes. Very much enjoyed listening to this today.
The first album I’ve completely never heard of. It’s very unique, mixing electronic with world music to create a distinctive blend that sounds nothing like anything I’ve heard before.
"On 2 November 1999, on the evening of the São Paulo Confessions album promotion, in an attempt to rescue the recordings from his studio which had been caught up in a fire, Subotić died at the age of 38." Pure juice of Brazil...
Great and considerably varied electronic grooves. Some outdated sounds and less interesting tracks crop up here and there, but overall the album holds up quite well
J'aime beaucoup le mélange des genres, même si certains passages particulièrement répétitifs m'ont semblé un peu appuyés
Some interesting Latin jazz. Some of it hits better than others, but it’s pretty cool for driving around town.
This album gave me some mixed feelings because I dislike most of the electronic music that I listened to in this list of 1001 albums, but this one has some very good songs. Since I speak Portuguese, I'm biased, however, I'll ignore this bias and make this electronic album the first 3 stars electronic album on my list. As a side note, it's very nice to discover new things, this project is really awesome.
A to ci dopiero ciekawy pik, plyta artysty o pseudonimie Suba, ktory pochodzil z dawnej jugoslawii, nagrywana w brazylii, a wydana w belgii, jest to tez jedyna plyta z jego zyjacej dyskografii, ktora mozna znalezc, a co do muzyka ktora jest tutaj grana, to jest to ciekawa fuzja muzyki elektronicznej z rytmami latynowskiej hameryki, wiec przewszystkim acidowy jazzik, samby, polowa kawalkow to numery czysto instrumentalne, natomiast reszta zawiera spiewy roznych brazylijskich wokalistej, jakos lepiej slucha mi sie trakow bez wokalu w tym wypadku, wokale sa do zludzenia do siebie podobne, moze to jezyk, albo ich proba zgrania sie z downtempoym beatem, ale jednak cos mi w nic nie pasuje, kompozcje stara sie laczyc w sobie elementy muzyki elektronicznej z brzmieniem latino gitarowym czy tez perkusujnym, pojawiaja sie tez klawisze, ktore najbardziej urzekaja na traku na neblina, ktory brzmi jak cos co moglo wyjsc spod lapy nujabesa, az tak dobre downtempo, ale nie samymi wolnymi tempami zyje plyta, jak brazylia, to musi byc takze i samba, wiec znalazl sie i traczek samba do gringo paulista, ktory jak dla mnie brzmi najbardziej latynosko z calego albumu, wiec gringowi udalo sie przekazac swoje doswiadczenia z zycia latino, bo ciekawy wydaje sie zyciorys pana suby, emigracja z jugoslawii w 89, gdy panstwo chylilo sie ku nieuniknionemu rozpadowi, kariera za wielka woda w tytulowym sao paulo, a do tego zakonczenie tej kariery smiercia za swoja muzyke, staral sie ratowac z pozaru materialy ktore mial w studiu, pewnie z tego powodu tez sam pik jest na tej liscie, bo skoro starszych materialow nawet nie ma w szeroko dostepnym streamie, to prawdopodonie jest to przyklad tak dobrze znanego muzycznego life after death, ale dobrze ze pojawiaja sie rowniez tak swieze w swym koncepcie rzeczy, a nie sam brytyjski pop czy znane juz murzyny
6/10. Might be worth a 7. Liked about every other song, but several annoyed me a bit
Is this what Lo-Fi is? Ideal for listening whilst working. Innoffensive (unless the translated lyrics are troublesome) and chilled but not particularly memorable. My ignorance stops me from identifying what makes this album stand out from a million similar.
This whole album is nice for city driving. Definitely captures that vibe well. Vocals are very hypnotic and sensual as well. I was gonna give it a 4 but it fell off a little for me, 3.5 down to 3.
interesting latin proto-acid jazz. lots of skippable songs here but there's some interesting ideas.
Klassieke latin-sounds met hier en daar wat Beat onder. Niet exact iets waar ik meer naar zou luisteren
Has some moments that drone on a little too much but overall a cool record. Will definitely be in my rotation for “music to listen to when reading,” which I think is worth something.
I'm not quite sure how to approach this album. It's good but I feel like I'm lacking knowledge of this kind of Brazilian electro bossa nova style, especially when it's come via the Balkans.
So - first listen I abandoned - almost 80% of the way and it did not engage me one bit - and was going to leave it there BUT then I decided to give it one more go to listen to while running and there it shone. This album wasn’t written to be listened idly in the background - it needs some form of physicality and that’s how I could appreciate it - the early 90s trip hop bossa nova rhythms and occasional dub is not necessarily my cup of tea but it won me over eventually.
This was a nice find. I don't usually like acid jazz, but this has some nice downtempo beats with a laid back Brazilian samba vibe and also a bit of experimental electronic so it was a nice change from the usual insipid and pretentious lounge music that’s so prevalent out there. I listed to it twice, once with headphones while spinning and also at my desk while working and I can say that it sounds a lot better with headphones on.
In general, I'm a fan of the Brazilian-inflected Acid Jazz bands of the 90s. I wouldn't make any of them Desert Island Discs but they're good to cook to and safe for when you're having people over. I don't know why this LP would get selected over the many others. I like the opener and Felicidade, but some of the others drag a bit.
Another I had just half listened to so will give a rating based on little thought.
If a speakeasy could be shoehorned into a Manhattan business tower elevator, this could be the soundtrack.
Fairly energetic, in terms of movement rather than tempo, yet it's still background music for me.
this was interesting. no idea what genre, but hints at electronica and bossa nova. its a unique listen with equal amounts of infectious grooves but with ear piercing effects
Heel prima te hebben zo op een zaterdagavond. Had er nog nooit van gehoord maar relaxte muziek.
Suba and São Paulo Confessions were new to me. The album felt like it was somewhere in the middle of electronic, ambient, and club music. "Antropófagos" and "Segredo" were my favorite tracks, and "Pecados da Madrugada" had some interesting sounds. Some of the tracks had some odd sounds in repetition that kept me from enjoying the tracks completely. "A Noite Sem Fim" was my least favorite, which is a surprise because I usually like longer tracks on an album more. The track had too many sour electronic sounds. For my first listen this album feels like 3 stars, but I would be interested in hearing more from the band.
Early few songs gave me some Portishead vibes. Album seemed to drag on a bit too long, but had some good songs I should come to. 7/10
Not bad at all, quite relaxing and nice to find an artist I'd never heard of.