CAPA Presents the Psychadelic Brazilian Rock of OS MUTANTES 10/8

Os Mutantes records have been passed from musician to musician over the years like cherished gifts, ever inspiring and altering the contemporary musical landscape. As a result, their cut-and-paste, sonic collage approach and tendency for cultural irony is an aesthetic now prevalent in modern music. Formed in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 1966, Os Mutantes blended English rock with American psychedelic and traditional Brazilian music to create an entirely new sound reflective of the turbulent times. After disbanding in the early ‘70s, Os Mutantes reunited in 2006 and are now touring to promote the September 8 release of Haih, their first album in 35 years.

CAPA presents Os Mutantes at the Capitol Theatre (77 S. High St.) on Saturday, October 8, at 8pm. Tickets are $25 at the Ohio Theatre Ticket Office (39 E. State St.), all Ticketmaster outlets, and www.ticketmaster.com. To purchase tickets by phone, please call (614) 469-0939 or (800) 745-3000. The Capitol Theatre Ticket Office will open two hours prior to the performance. Students between the ages of 13-19 can purchase $5 High Five tickets while available. Special guest for the evening will be Deleon. This Caliente Series performance is made possible through the generous support of series sponsors David and Mo Meuse.

Os Mutantes' unique, otherworldly sound was forged in a time and place of turmoil. San Paulo, Brazil, in the early sixties was a city and nation under siege. The military had seized power and authorities were coming down hard on anything resembling descent. It was amidst this precarious backdrop that two teenagers met at a high school band contest in 1964. Inspired by a Revolver-era Beatles, Arnaldo Baptista and Rita Lee Jones soon drafted Arnaldo's brother Sergio and formed what would become Os Mutantes.

Soon the band, along with other forward-looking musicians, writers, and artists, were taking part in lively discussions that would eventually evolve into a culturally defining movement. With elements of political criticism, prankster humor, and an eclectic range of musical styles, the musical expression movement of Tropicália was born.

It was during Tropicália's start that the Mutantes recorded their self-titled debut album. As students battled the police and military, the Mutantes recorded an ambitious album merging seductive Brazilian music with the new psychedelic pop of the Beatles and Beach Boys. The end result didn't so much take a direct political stand as offer a complete aesthetic rejection of the harsh reality surrounding them.

The ruling generals soon regarded the Mutantes as musical emissaries of an emerging counter culture, and the group's performances began to get raided. The Mutantes seemed to delight in their role as cultural provocateurs with Dias performing in a Napoleonic military uniform, his brother Baptista in a priest's cassock, and singer Rita Lee appearing in a bridal gown.

When the band's third album A Divina Comédia ou Ando Meio Desiglado was recorded in 1969, Brazil's political situation had only further deteriorated. A governmental edict called AI 5 (Institutional Act 5) resulted in the persecution of intellectuals, artists, and activists, the closing of the congress, and countless arrests. The crack down was the beginning of the end for the Tropicália movement. Giberto Gil and Caetano Veloso, close friends of the Mutantes and two of the leading forces of Tropicália, were arrested and exiled. Despite this, the Mutantes had their biggest hit with the song "Ando Meio Desiglado."

While performing in Paris, the band recorded an album for Polydor UK. The record was intended to introduce the band to a broader western audience and featured many of their previously recorded songs sung in English. The masters from the session were subsequently lost and the album, Technicolor, wouldn't resurface for nearly three decades. Singer Rita Lee soon left the band to pursue a solo career, and eventually it was only leader Sérgio Dias leading the band until they disbanded in 1978.

In the band's absence, their standing amongst rock connoisseurs only intensified. In 2000, the lost 1971 album Technicolor was located and released to a near euphoric critical response. In 2006, the band reunited and performed at London's Barbican Arts Center. This was followed by triumphant shows throughout North America and the Mutantes being awarded the Brazilian equivalent of a Grammy for best band.

On September 8, Mutantes released Haih, their first new album in over three decades. The record brilliantly updates the band's legendary Tropicália sound, propelling it out of the sixties and into an uncharted but undeniably exotic future. As expected, the songs utilize a startling assortment of instrumentation, from austere violins to distorted metallic guitars and something called a crazy flute, lending an underlying theatrical power to their genre-defying music.

The Ohio Arts Council helped fund this program with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, education excellence, and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans. CAPA also appreciates the support of the Abigail Simpson, Grace K. and Robert L. Rohe, and Martha G. Staub Funds of the Columbus Foundation, assisting donors and others in strengthening our community for the benefit of all of its citizens, and the Greater Columbus Arts Council, supporting the city's artists and arts organizations since 1973.

Owner/operator of downtown Columbus' magnificent, historic theatres (Ohio Theatre, Palace Theatre, Southern Theatre) and manager of the Riffe Center Theatre Complex, Lincoln Theatre, Valentine Theatre (Toledo, OH), and Shubert Theater (New Haven, CT), CAPA is a not-for-profit, award-winning presenter of national and international performing arts and entertainment now celebrating 40 years of service. For more information, visit www.capa.com.

 

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