Brazilian Girls

In a little club called Nublu on Avenue C in New York's East Village Didi Gutman, Sabina Sciubba, Aaron Johnston and Jesse Murphy got together and started playing every Sunday night for a year and a half. It began as impromptu late night jam sessions, dance music run on rythm and desire. "It evolved naturally very quickly, in a couple of weeks we had songs without ever rehearsing them. We went into the studio and started playing. That's how the songs got written," explains Gutman. Gradually they created a buzz and people from music labels started showing up to their Sunday night gigs. They signed with Verve "because they weren't going to fuck with us and interfere with our music." Their self-titled first album received much praise and so they moved on in the world with their signature polyglot sound.

Their second album Talk to La Bomb came out last month and has been very well received. Described as the soundtrack to the end of the world, or the record that will ignite the planets salvation. The music has become more fierce and they push their innovative fusion of electro, dub, pop, punk and dance music even further. They are now ready to rock the crowd. Following the release of the new album the band is now on tour. On a bus somewhere between Vermont and Toronto Gutman admits that the tour bus is one of his favourite places in the world. "I love my band mates. This is who I am musically and these guys are fun to hang out with. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else right now. We always had good communication in the band and weve always had fun with each other."

When asked what Talk to La Bomb aimed to achieve, Gutman quips, "We were trying really hard not to suck. That was the aim. It was a little bit difficult because our first record was so critically acclaimed and that put a lot of pressure on us. All we wanted was to make a good record really and the reception has been good. We tried to make it sound more like how we sound live. While we were recording it I wasnt happy with it for a long time but it finally got to the point where I liked it and that is the only thing that matters."

The band boasts a strong visual image and although playing larger venues now, playing live in a small packed club brought the initial recognition. Sabina is the ultimate frontwoman with her innovative sense of style and alluring sexiness. "I think this band has always been good live. I prefer live shows to the record. Nublu is more the vibe, I love playing there. I dont think there is such a big difference now. Its still four people playing music. The difference is the environment. I think it is important to put on a good live show but its not a circus act, its not about lights and explosions. Its four people playing music. Luckily we have Sabina in the band. She really puts on a show and performs. Its so cool. People are fascinated with her on stage."

Brazilian Girls have a definite international feel to them. Sabina was born in Rome, reared in Germany and lived in south of France; Didi is Argentinean from Buenos Aires; Jesse is from California; Aaron is from Kansas. Their music reflects diverse influences. "Its so many directions that it just comes out naturally. We were doing this thing at Nublu and nobody was thinking of taking it anywhere so we didnt care and mixed up a lot of things. It ended up being our strength. Also with Sabina singing in different languages it makes it sound like its from different places. On the new album Sabina even mixes up different languages within a song because she can and because she likes it. I think for a long time she felt obliged to sing in English just to make it work because she was living in New York, but at Nublu nobody expected anything from her so she was free to do what she wanted."

Despite the name, the band is not Brazilian, a question the band fields frequently. Gutman jokes, "I always lie every time. Lately my imagination has been playing tricks on me and Im running out of ideas. Lying is the new truth."

hannabjork@reykjavik.com