Hoje is
Gal Costa's first release on her new record label, Trama, and was released in the same year
Gal turned 60. (It was released stateside a year later and retitled Today.) Most of the tracks are composed by young, still rather unknown composers such as
Moisés Santana, Junio Barreto, Tito Bahiense,
Moreno Veloso, Nuno Ramos, and Marcos Augusto. From
Gal's own generation, the illustrious duo
Caetano Veloso and
Chico Buarque contribute with "Luto" and "Embebedado," respectively. The move to the young, hip label Trama seems to have done good for
Gal, as
Hoje is her most dynamic and fresh-sounding album in years. But although the songwriters who contributed to the album may be comparatively young, the music in itself is largely traditional, ranging from bossa nova and Afro-Brazilian folk music to
Gal's typical brand of soft ballads. One of the most surprising and welcome songwriting contributors to
Hoje is the African artist
Lokua Kanza, from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Together with Carlos Rennó, he forms what proves to be a very fine songwriting team. Their lovely ballad "Te Adorar" brings out the best of
Gal and is perhaps the most beautiful song on the album. The opening track, "Mar e Sol," with its harmonic, billowing melody, is another little gem by
Kanza and Rennó. ~ Philip Jandovský