“On their first new album in five years, the long-running Brazilian ensemble takes its instrumental sound to a new strength.
Active since 2003, the band Constantina has a kind of mystique around it that brings rapturous reunions in every new album released. “Atrópico”, the most recent effort from the band, comes with a new sense of growth while its members had to deal with major transformations in their personal lives.
The loss of a father, a battle against a cancer and the born of a new child; all these struggles and blessings gathering in these five years of hiatus help to shape the sound pieces that we found in the new album.
“Atrópico” does nothing that you haven’t heard them do before—all of their peculiar melodies are there, but only this time, they have done it with a more emphatically and dramatically way. Using more horns sections and a new approach in the guitar work, the band made a step forward in its atmospheric ambiences. It sounds darker than any previous work from the band, and yet, full of hopefulness.”
Another La Petite Chambre release and possibly the core of their artists together, Constantina give me vibes of a band that would be suited to the Constellation label. This is Post Rock through the lens of more jazzy, roots orientated style. There are times when a group like Isotope 217 comes to mind and Veloso’s a_d_a project’s influence comes though on the track “Ensinando a Ser Sombra” aka “Teaching To Be Shadow”. There is a certain amount of familiarity within the pieces, but thankfully not as a whole as the band are still able to throw curve balls and put their own heritage into the pieces. The way that they transition musically from more traditional rock set up to electronics and then jazz is very fluid and natural.
“Atrópico” is the kind of album that is multi-dimensional and will not overstay it’s welcome. The album is available on LP (250 copies), CD (50 copies) and Digital.
