Darko Rundek & Cargo Orkestar, Lyric Hammersmith, London<br/> Tropicalia Remix, Barbican, London <br/> Os Mutantes, Barbican, London
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Your support makes all the difference.The semi-acoustic, jazzy space music of Cargo Orkestar, who were formed in Paris from a largely exiled Eastern European diaspora, showcases here the new CD, Mhm A-Ha Oh Yeah Da-Da. Songs almost meander into being from seemingly chance collisions between instruments.
There is a strong sense of theatre. The artist Biljana Tutorov provides a running video commentary, while the contrast between Vedran Peternel's mixing and sampling,and violinist Isabel's dramatic playing, adds a bracing air of immediacy.
The mercurial and laconic frontman Darko Rundek, singing in several languages, keeps the audience in high spirits and on its toes.His minimal guitar playing complements Djani Pervan's brilliant drumming or Isabel's far-reaching violin.
Led by Moreno Veloso and producer Kassim, Rio's Orquestra Imperial, with their four vocalists, two guitars, brass, keyboards and six drummers, play samba in the spirit of Tropicalia with a love for the history and roots of Brazilian music.
An unlikely choice of Yes's "Owner of a Lonely Heart" swings the orquestra into a rockier sound, and after an overlong first set, the second half's live recreation of Tropicalia's first album, Tropicalia ou Panis et Circensis, is a sublime delight. They could have got away with playing it twice.
After some lengthy technical delays, Os Mutantes come on to a hero's welcome. The original singer Rita Lee is absent, but the Baptista brothers and Zelia Duncan are superb.
The songs have some delicious harmonies and effects. The pace ranges from the pounding "Technicolor" to the rousing "El Justiciero" and the dislocated rhythms of "Don Quixote". Caetano Veloso's "Baby", with its trippy, tripping time changes andDuncan's moody vocal, shows an epic, theatrical grasp of sound.
Returning as cult heroes - folk heroes - after decades of obscurity, their back catalogue is in print again, several camera crews abound, and there is talk of a world tour. Like Brian Wilson's Smile, or Love's Forever Changes, this is a second coming that has been worth the long wait.
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