By Chesney Hearst, Senior Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Brazilian singer-songwriter Cícero Rosa Lins will continue his launch tour for his sophomore album, “Sábado” (Saturday) by making a fitting Saturday stop in his hometown of Rio de Janeiro at the Teatro Rival Petrobras on September 28th.
Known for his moving slow to mid-tempo independent music with introspective lyrics, Cícero met success after the release of his first solo album, “Canções de Apartamento” (“Apartment Songs”) in 2011.
The album, released both physically and digitally, was downloaded 100,000 times in its first month alone. The album has been downloaded over 500,000 times to date. Additionally, Cícero’s video clips on Youtube have together surpassed the one million views mark.
“I think his work manages to blend elements of MPB and indie rock in a unique way. It brings together the best of each world,” friend of Cícero and co-creator of Pockets Comix, Renato Lima told The Rio Times.
“Day in, day out, I listen to “Canções de Apartamento” to inspire my work,” said Lima whose comics weave songs lyrics with portraits of characters engaging and interacting with one another in seemingly everyday activities to portray “the lyrical moments of our lives.”
When asked what he liked best about Cícero’s work, Lima had one answer. “The lyrics. Talking about love/relationships is very difficult and he does it masterfully. The fit between words and music is near perfection.”
Fellow Carioca and creator of the “heavy baile” genre of music that combines Carioca Funk and club Leo Justi praised Cícero’s work. “It’s simply GOOD. The melodies are precise, tight, and express a feeling succinctly,” he said. “The guitar lines are equally intelligent.”
Born and raised in Rio, Cícero formed his first band, Alice, at age sixteen. They attracted a small following but disbanded in 2009. It was then that Cícero began his solo career.
On his debut album, he played all of the instruments himself and recorded the songs in many homes where he had previously stayed instead of a professional studio. For the ten songs of his second release, “Sábado,” Cícero again recorded outside of a studio. He played many of the instruments himself but this time he received a little help from collaborators.
“‘Sábado’ has no climax, choruses, cymbal attacks, treble, middle,” Cícero told O Globo in August while explaining the differences between his sophomore effort and his debut. “It’s an album of the twenty-nine minutes that I think of as that moment of late afternoon between 5:30PM and 6PM, which is neither mud nor brick nor happy nor sad, neither beginning nor end of anything. It is a state of mind accompanying me ever since.”
“Sábado” is also available for free download on Cícero’s website. Vinyl editions of the album and “Canções de Apartamento” will also be on sale at Saturday night’s show.
Who: Cícero
Where: Teatro Rival Petrobras–Rua Alvaro Alvim , 33/37 – Cinelândia
When: Saturday, September 28th. 9:30 PM
Tickets: R$30– R$60, available here and at the Teatro Rival Petrobras box office.
Read more (in Portuguese).
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