After a long row of opaque and uneven albums during the '80s and '90s,
Rita Lee returned to form in 2000 with the critically acclaimed rock album
3001. The following year she recorded the equally impressive
Aqui, Ali, em Qualquer Lugar, with its inventive renditions of
Beatles' classics. With
Balacobaco,
Rita Lee has done it again, but this time with a sound very similar to the type of spirited pop that characterized her music in the early '80s. The opening track, "Sexo e Amor," was a big hit in Brazil and definitely has the potential to become a new
Rita Lee classic. As has the catchy "As Minas de Sampa," (with witty lyrics about the girls of São Paulo) which has a touch of ska to it. The sweet and romantic "Já Te Falei" was written by
Arnaldo Antunes,
Marisa Monte, and
Carlinhos Brown, and has the same luxurious and unmistakably Brazilian pop feel as the songs on that trio's own 2002 mega-success
Tribalistas. "Hino Dos Malucos" is a funny rock song paying general homage to "mad" people, "A Gripe do Amor" is a glossy disco track and "Copacabana Boy" a cool, elegant pop tune. From start to finish,
Balacobaco is clearly the work of an inspired
Rita Lee. ~ Philip Jandovský