Aline Morales

1. Aline Morales — Flores, Tambores e Amores (Independent release)

Brilliant new album from Brazilian expat Aline Morales now based in Toronto. David Dacks in The Abstract Index has been touting the pleasures of this recording since it came out in May. Written over the winter months with producer David Arcus, Morales, formerly lead singer with the drumming ensemble Maracatu Nunca Antes has created a hot summer record full of great songs.


- Northshore News

10. Aline Morales Flores Tambores E Amores (Independent)
Aline Morales debut dropped on us like an early spring thaw or an Indian summer in November. The warmth she brought with Flores Tambores e Amores had all the elements of Tropicalia's sound ? samba, psychedelic rock, bossa-nova, jazz and funk ? but most importantly it had its soul. Rather than render homage to her roots with stagnant repetition, Morales solo record demonstrates respect for Tropicalia's spirit. Her already impressive palette further includes elements of forro, MBP and eclectic instrumentation while her innovative compositions kindle our interest with its unexpected turns and bold arrangements. A percussionist at heart, Morales demonstrates a remarkable flair for songwriting. She strikes a nice balance, giving her record a loose reflective vibe, fizzing with late '60s defiance that comes across as energetic and progressive. Flores Tambores e Amores will undoubtedly bring the Toronto-based Brazilian further recognition along with well-deserved praise for her contribution to contemporary Brazilian music in Canada.
Nereida Fernandes - Exclaim Magazine

By David Dacks

In Toronto, Aline Morales is the anti-Weeknd. She's no semi-mysterious figure on a rocket ride of blog buzz and co-signs; instead she's performed in front of many thousands of people who would be sure to recognize the face if not necessarily her name. As the former leader of Brazilian drumming ensemble Maracatu Nunca Antes, Morales has been a fixture of the wildly popular Pedestrian Sundays in Toronto's Kensington Market, as well as innumerable outdoor festivals. She's also been in Ontario tourism commercials. In short, she's hidden in plain sight and her grassroots popularity sets the stage for a major breakout. Morales' debut album Flores Tambores E Amores is an outstanding example of evergreen Brazilian pop spiced with unusual and creative instrumentation. Her clear, confident voice shines through finely crafted arrangements that balance folklore, pop, jazz, funk and a dash of Tropicalia. If there is still such a thing as world music (your guess is as good as mine), this would be one of Canada's world music discs of the year.

This is a much wider ranging album than a lot of people would have expected, was that your intention from the start?
I never really had an intention. It was just a natural process of being an artist, a will to grow my career, it was a very organic creative process. So even if it's different from what people are used to, it just feels natural.

This is a different beast than Maracatu Nunca Antes. What are the biggest differences about getting this together?
With the drumming groups I've been involved with they've been community-based. People that are part of it and even the music that we play ? let's say you don't need to be a musician to play that. It's very traditional. Of course there's a musical aspect but it brings together the community that music has to have. But with this album it's quite a bit different. We did everything from scratch; of course we have influences, but it's me and Dave being quite specific about what we wanted. With Maracatu it was more like fun, fun fun.

Tell me about working with [producer] David Arcus? What was the creative process like for this album?
Me and Dave have been working together for a while before this album. Before we used to covers and things like that. Both of us decided to write some material together, so we locked ourselves in the basement during the winter writing music. He would come up with an idea, I would come up with a melody. He has very different influences than me. (the instrumentation and arrangement ideas) were his and mine. He's a vintage nerd so he's in tune with all the vintage equipment; he's really particular about the sound he wanted on the CD. I learned a lot from him in that aspect. But the balafon [a West African xylophone-type instrument on "Um Cherio Que Arrepia"], for instance, was one of my ideas. We had the song and it felt so raw, that it shouldn't have much [adornment]. But then I came up with the balafon. We did everything together. It was very nice working with him. The whole process was almost two years to write record and do everything.

It sounds like a long-lost MPB album from the 70s; it's got folkloric elements, funky bits and very creative arrangements and unusual instrumentation. Was that period a touchstone for you?
Oh yeah, for sure. David is a big lover of Tropicalia and that movement of Brazilian music. And that's a big part of this whole production for sure is the influences both me and Dave have.

This is almost like a singer-songwriter album, so how does your drumming experience feed into these songs?
I can't be detached from my drumming experience because that was my big school. In music, I'm rhythm head. So it's hard not to take that in consideration with what I do and with everything I will do in the future. It's part of my soul, my heart, the drum the drum brings that thing from inside. Even thought this album is completely different with these soft melodies and a little funk, I still want that roughness that I got from the drums that made me fall in love.

Toronto's Brazilian community is fairly small but there's a much larger community of Brazilophiles. That described Maracatu Nunca Antes - you'd get Brazilians and non-Brazilians playing together in this community. How would you describe the Toronto experience for Brazilian music.
By the way, I have a new [drumming] group called Baque De Bamba. More and more there is this Brazilian thing, this movement which is growing here in Toronto and in North America and in Canada. There are a lot of lovers of Brazilian music and culture. More and more people are realizing that Brazilian music is more than "The Girl From Ipanema," not that I want to say anything bad about that ? bossa nova is amazing ? but if you look at what's happening at the musical scene in Brazil it's so different than what people here are used to. And this CD has a little bit of that, artists there are often connected to what's going on insi - exclaim.ca

By Nereida Fernandes
When it comes to Toronto, ON's Brazilian music scene, Aline
Morales has her finger in every pie. From her involvement in a
slew of jazz collectives and percussion ensembles, particularly
maracatu (many of which she leads), to graduating from being
Luanda Jones's sidekick in Luandaline, Morales is finally releasing
a solo record. Refusing to take shortcuts, she forges her own
path with Flores Tambores E Amores , rather than picking up on
the dub/electronica formula of her contemporaries Céu and Luísa
Maita. Her roots-oriented bossa-samba, though glazed with the
urban groove of MPB, reflects great reverence for bossa nova
classics, '70s Tropicália and forro. The minor key Tropicália of
"Musa," as it slowly expands with trumpet arrangements and its
tongue-in-cheek reference to lyrics of bossa standards, is
absolutely delicious, as is "Pra Que Sambar" (translated: "why
samba"). Sounding like a long-lost track from Jobim's catalogue,
her musical soliloquy culminates with the words, "It's a story of
pain transformed into joy," providing a poetic addendum to
Jobim's defence of his new style on "Desafinado." Flores
Tambores E Amores is a quiet thrill, a noteworthy demonstration
of Aline Morale's talent for thumping on our rhythmic hearts as
she does the maracatu's alfaia. - Exclaim Magazine

BY: David Dacks

GRID RATING: 9/10

Simply put, Aline Morales’ self-released Flores, Tambores e Amores may be the ?nest Brazilian album ever produced in Canada.

Morales is best known as the former lead singer for drumming ensemble Maracatu Nunca Antes, whom you might have seen at many Kensington Pedestrian Sundays and Afrofest celebrations. Here, she steps out as a modern incarnation of lush, late-’70s Brazilian popular music.

Morales shines with mature con?dence amid David Arcus’ outstanding orchestrations, which incorporate brass, woodwind, Tropicalia ?ourishes, a few breakbeats and the odd glockenspiel.

Not surprisingly, a record whose title translates as “Flowers, Drums and Love” is a warm and sunny affair, but the enthralling rhythmic depth and occasionally darker moods create a much richer listening experience. With this record, Morales plugs into Canada’s singer- songwriter psyche by leading with the drum.

Playlist picks: “Flores, Tambores e Amores,” “Musa” - The Grid, Toronto

A captivating bandleader with a natural, innately powerful voice, Morales reaches across cultures, thrilling the uninitiated at beach raves, folk fests and club shows alike. Expect the first recordings from the Aline Morales Band, her most innovative project, to drop this year, complementing Nunca Antes' excellent 2007 disc. - Exclaim Magazine