new music: brazilian rock band the baggios holds nothing back while tackling social crises in ‘brutown’ #soundcheck

Based out of São Cristóvão in Brazil, the guitar-and-drums duo of Julio Andrade and Gabriel Perninha has been making music as The Baggios since 2004. Though their line-up is stripped down, their sound is anything but, as they prove on the massive “Brutown”. It’s an album focused on social upheaval and the reality of everyday life in Brazil that’s rich with gut shaking riffs and massive hooks.

By Nathan Leigh*, AFROPUNK Contributor

Leading with the energetic “Estigma”, the band adds a killer horn section into the mix, before delving into the dark and riff-heavy “Brutown”. The two songs set the stage for the album dealing with violence and a city on the edge of chaos. Producer Felipe Rodarte wisely gives each song a unique identity: strings coloring the waltz of “Miquin,” an organ riff leading off the dynamic “Como um Tiro de Bacamarte”, and always the emotional guitar work of frontman Julio Andrade. A band this stripped down needs to be tight as hell to give the guitarist space to shred like that. By the time they launch into the standout “Padece Ser” it’s clear there’s no 2-piece band on the planet with the range and power of The Baggios.

Photo Credit: Vicente Otávio

Banner photo via Arquivo Pessoal