Palm Pictures LLC
2012-2

label website

Da Lata's Songs from the Tin combine funky Afro-Brazilian Samba and Yoruban grooves with sinuous layered vocals and a heavy emphasis on percussion-rich string quintet settings. Key members Liliana Chachian (solo vocals), Christian Frank (guitars, percussion, keyboards, bass, berimbeau, backup vocals), Oli Savill (percussion and backing vocals) and Patrick Forge (effects and production) are but four of the 19 musicians listed and this high number hints at complexly fashioned, multi-dimensional compositions. Those are rich in ambiance but a far cry from the synth-dominated Ambient genre by keeping the main Samba percussion tracks acoustic and human- rather than computer-powered. Focused more on trancey groove elements than straight-ahead song, Songs from the Tin is a unique production from this London-based formation whose vocals don't take center stage but are embedded in tropical soundscapes and pulsing beats which lean but lightly on Dance Hall culture to walk the contemporization of Brazilian music with respect. This isn't Suba or Belbel but something else altogether - Da Lata: dense, tropical, energetic, organic and dance-club-ready all at the same time.