SOUNDTRACK: BEBEL GILBERTO-Tiny Desk Concert #96 (October 15, 2020).
Typically, I don’t know the international performers that Tiny Desk brings out. Of course I’ve heard of Bebel Gilberto, although I don’t know all that much about her music.
Bebel Gilberto is, of course, the daughter of one of the creators of bossa nova, João Gilberto.
And while her music is lovely, as the blurb says, I’m more blown away by her view!
When we invited Brazilian vocalist Bebel Gilberto to do a Tiny Desk (home) concert, we had no idea her home would have a spectacular view of speed boats gliding across the lagoon in the heart of the picturesque Leblon neighborhood overlooking the iconic Dois Irmãos mountain in Rio de Janeiro.
Her first song, “Cliché,” is mellow and smooth. There a ton of music going on behind her, but she only has one other player with her, Chico Brown. Is it all samples? What’s going on there?
During this concert, she is accompanied by Chico Brown, the son of famed musician Carlinhos Brown and grandson of the legendary Chico Buarque.
Between songs she sits with Ella her tiny dog and talks about her new album–her first in six years.
“Na Cara” opens with a very cool deep bass line. Brown plays the keytar and sings backing vocals.
You can feel the presence of all of that Brazilian musical royalty in one of Bebel Gilberto’s most popular songs, the closing “Aganjú.”
“Aganjú” was written by Chico’s father and is her most popular song. Chico plays the acoustic guitar. The song has a slow beginning but a much bigger sexier chorus.
[READ: November 23, 2020] “Ghoul”
This George Saunders story reminded me a lot of another George Saunders story, “Pastoralia.”
In that story a man and a woman work as “cavemen” in a living diorama. They are watched all the time and must alway be “acting” when there are visitors.
In this story, everyone seems to be working in a living diorama. In fact, their entire world seems to be a theme park or museum and everyone must perform for the visitors.
This story takes the premise of the first story further in almost every way–their entire world s underground with only one way in. Everything has been turned into this amusement area. They eat at Vat of Lunch, and every area of their universe has a clever name like Beneath Our Mother the Sea and Wild Day Out West. The people in each of these scenes act as their are name implies.
The main character, Brian, is a Squatting Ghoul. He and his fellow Squatting Ghouls are with Feeding Ghouls and Li’l Demons. It’s not clear exactly what Brian does, but it doesn’t sound pleasant.
The narrator talks to Tom. Tom complains about his wife who takes her role way too seriously. She has been assigned as a cockney Cook in Victorian Weekend. Her job is to interrupt any Royals (visitors) who are eating, by knocking over a tea set and then apologizing in cockney. Tom complains that she never stops talking in Cockney which is crazy since there are never any visitors anyway.
This leads to an uncomfortable silence.
Rules are rules, and Tom realizes that he has made a terrible mistake. The narrator intends to turn in Tom. Soon after Brian gets a note from Tom that says he hopes Brian won’t turn him in since they are such good friends. Brian decides not to say anything.
The next day Amy, Special Assistant to Shirley of Monitoring, says they saw the note from Tom in his room. She brought the note to Tom and he admitted that he had blurted out a Regrettable Falsehood and since Brian didn’t say anything he is now choosing to be First Individual Forthcoming and is ratting ott Brian for not ratting him out.
But Amy has always liked Brian and she offers to make a deal with him. If they agree to rat out Tom, she’ll forgive his transgression. Brian agrees and realizes just how beautiful he (now) finds Amy. They kiss and mate. It’s not his first time but it is one of the best he has had. Later, as they walk out they see Tom, dead.
Brian feels bad, but when he remembers that Tom was going to be First Individual Forthcoming, it was better that Tom got it than he did.
The next day Amy says ehs feel guilty about what they did to Tom. While they are talking, a flood comes through their sleeping quarters. It is one of many recent floods and when Tom says the floods seems to be getting worse, Amy is silent.
Then she whispered flood to him they giddily say “flood” to each other. Then she whispers that Visitors are coming. He laughs and jokingly says “visitors”.
But it turns out that other woman, Gwen overheard their conversation.
When Amy sees her, and her expression, she blows her whistle. The crowd comes and Amy says that Gwen uttered a Regrettable Falsehood, Gwen denies this and tries to blame Amy for the words. She tries to get everyones to see that Amy is really he bad person . But she is so nervous that no one believes her. And soon they have dragged Gwen away.
The place where they are reminds me of the City of Ember. There is a large opening called the Egress Spout. No one is allowed in the spout. That is where the Visitors are supposed to come from (if there were any). But then Brian hears from someone who has gone up the Spout that the Egress Spout is not an opening at all, it is just a long tunnel to some caves–there is no actual way out.
Could that possibly be true? But who can he tell this Regrettable Falsehood too. And why are the Monitors Shirley and Kiko heading towards him at a quick pace?
What would happen to him (and Amy) is he told the truth.
I appreciated the intensity of this story more than “Pastoralia,” but I feel like it should be just the beginning of this world.
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