João Gordo formed an interesting and productive partnership with producer and guitarist Val Santos during the pandemic, which resulted in the album Brutal Brega , released in October by the Wikimetal Music .
The album is a fun tribute to kitsch music, featuring Brazilian music classics transformed into punk rock versions, and it originated as a joke during the isolation times of the pandemic.
At that time, Val Santos began developing the versions for fun, as part of a live project called "Sargento Brega". When João Gordo heard the songs, he became interested and asked to sing one.
In a short time, the partnership solidified and the two had recorded dozens of versions together, which resulted in the album. Exclusively here at Wikimetal , Val Santos tells us the details of the project in a track-by-track analysis of the new release:
1. "Black Beetle"
"It's funny that the first song on the album was the last one to be included. We were deciding which one to choose, and then we recorded 'Fuscão Preto'. When I saw João singing the chorus, I even added a note to make it sound like he was singing about a mountain, and it turned out really good. I said, 'Damn, this has to be the first one.' It was unanimous."
2. "I have"
“This was the first one I recorded with João, and it’s amazing. The way he sings is so fierce, so heavy. I write rock songs, very Ramones-esque, some heavier stuff too, but I don’t take away the characteristics of the original song, right? So, I keep all the notes from the song and the keyboard themes, the famous ones from each song, I use them and play them on the guitar. So, whoever listens will recognize them right away.”
3. "Little Gypsy Girl"
"This version is really cool, very hardcore. It turned out great with João, right? And this one has a high note, I didn't know João Gordo could reach such high notes. It's sensational, I love the version he sings."
4. "Happy Sunday"
“This song and 'Não Se Vá' have the highest notes, and João nailed it. I thought, 'Damn, how can he sing with such a powerful voice and such a high note?' I was kind of impressed. And it was amazing, man. It's a fun song. I remember watching this song on Silvio Santos's show 'Qual é a Música?'”
5. "The Girlfriend I Dreamed Of"
“This was a request from João Gordo. It’s crazy to hear him singing a romantic song, and there are two of these [on the album]. This song turned out amazing, man. Many of my friends showed it to their mothers, and my mother gets emotional when she hears the song that she used to listen to when she was younger, and the song is really beautiful, it’s very good, and it sounds amazing in João Gordo’s voice. Pepino.”
6. "Cucumber"
"We both chose this one; there was a duo called Jacó and Jacozinho, and they were very famous in the sertanejo genre in the 1970s. This song became very popular in the early 1980s. The lyrics are very funny, very good."
7. "Don't go"
"This is the only one with a special guest appearance, by Marisa Orth, and how she sings! When we went to record it, and this one has a low tone from João Gordo and a very high tone in the female part, it's impressive how high she is to sing. Then I received the separate vocals from Marisa, wow, how well she sings! Besides singing very well, she has a very beautiful timbre, reminiscent of those older singers like Angela Maria, she sang with vibrato. And it's quite unusual, isn't it? João Gordo singing with Maísa Orth, I still think it deserves a music video."
8. "Latin Lover"
"Another one by Sidney Magal, also wonderful. I did a more punk version of it; I really like the way Gordo sings Magal's songs."
9. "Green Fields of My Land"
"This is another unusual song as well, imagine João Gordo singing Agnaldo Timóteo. I love this song, I think its melody is sensational, beautiful, even back when Agnaldo Timóteo was singing it. I mixed in a little bit of a romantic Ramones song, took the background keyboards and mixed it with a big rock sound."
10. "I'm Going to Raffle Off My Heart"
"The song title alone is great; it became famous in the voice of Lindomar Castilho, he had an amazing voice, it's a shame he messed up his life and ruined his career. An interesting thing is that the songs aren't as simple as I imagined. Some are, but many have a lot of chord changes, some have seven or eight different chords. The lyrics, okay, they're more popular and simpler, but some have very beautiful melodies. To tell the truth, I think it's kind of unfair to call some of them cheesy, but that's the popular way of saying it, so let them say it's cheesy, but I think it's popular."
11. "Sorceress"
"This version is also quite hardcore. I love these lyrics."
12. "I'm Crazy"
"That was Gordo's suggestion; I didn't know that Reginaldo Rossi song. When I did the version, it turned out really great, so much so that I think this one promises to be the 'Rock and Roll All Nite' of Brutal Brega ."
