XENOSSAMBA

Although SATANIQUE SAMBA TRIO hasn't released a full-length album since 2013's "Bad Trip Simulator #3," the band issued the "Mó Bad" EP to serve as an appetizer for something new. Well, two years later and no new album but another round of hors d'oeuvres in the form of another EP titled XENOSSAMBA which despite a short playing time of only slightly over sixteen minutes manages to squeeze in eight densely packed avant-samba-jazz numbers. This Brazilian band from the capital city Brasilia once again doesn't disappoint for those who like their music freaky. Because of the brevity of the tracks with none lasting over 2.5 minutes, it kind of reminds me of a punk-jazz rock album as the tracks sort of slap you in the face and before you can react terminate their existence however this one actually has some mellow atmospheric segments as well including carnival sounding vibes.

The main difference between this newer SATANIQUE SAMBA TRIO sound as opposed to their earlier albums like "Sangrou" is that they now aren't afraid to let a few melodies develop and play around for awhile despite dissonant counterpoints and strange avenues taken. Unlike the earlier albums which were about the ultimate blending of samba, avant-garde jazz and avant-prog rock into an unrecognizable frenzy, this one sort of slows things down a bit making a more digestible ride instead of the speedfests of the past. Still weird, still wild as hell and unlike anything else you've heard but somewhat more in line to what a more upbeat avant-prog band like News For Babel or Universe Zero would sound like if they dipped into the world of Brazilian samba.

While i tend to like the earlier more adventurous albums better, this is actually a fairly cool little run of music that despite its slightly more accessible nature, doesn't even remotely resemble anything that will be hitting the top 40 soon. It sounds as if the band is more relaxed with its fusion style after they've proven themselves as musical maniacs capable of doing all kinds of bizarre madness. Having said that, this one is not exactly an easy listen either as it contains all kinds of angular rhythms, polyphonic opposition and conjures up a maelstrom of odd off-kilter time signature workouts. While still existing in mondo bizarro, it lands on planet Earth just long enough so that they manage to add some recognizable samba and melodies and the results are quite successful. Check this one out if the earlier albums struck you as too chaotic.