Efemera

As the excellent compilation Oi! A Nova Música Brasileira! has proved, Brazil is currently producing some of the most interesting and innovative pop music in the world, much of it owing little to its most famous exports, samba and bossa nova. Sao Paulo-born newcomer Tulipa (yes, it does mean tulip) definitely fits into this category. Efemera (and yes, it does mean ephemera) opens with the warm breeze of its title-track, and the sun stays out for the next 40 minutes or so. But if this all sounds a bit too innocuous, there’s more to Tulipa than immediately meets the ear.

Yes, her songs are either lightly skipping pop tunes in the mould of ‘Pontual’ or melancholy introspective affairs such as ‘Do Amor’ (which can be found on the compilation mentioned above) but they also go off on unexpected tangents, utilise unusual chord progressions and boast gently quirky arrangements. But all this would be irrelevant if Tulipa didn’t also have a gift for catchy off-kilter melodies and taking tired clichés (such as the cheesy fairground waltz riff of ‘Pedrinho’) and using them to create something sufficiently fresh as to not irritate or bore.

But above all, this is a charming little record. Creating something this commercially viable while not making it imminently disposable is no easy trick to pull off, and Tulipa should be applauded for doing so. Even though it’s still early in the year, I have a strong suspicion Efemera will be one of my favourites of 2011.