Transporting the audience to the beaches of Brazil, student-favourite pub the Caroline of Brunswick collaborated with upcoming events company Gainstage Promotions to host a memorable night of Latin American music. The lively event showcased a diverse range of Brazilian genres, commemorating rich cultural sounds within the intimate concert space. I attended the event with my friend and fellow student, Joaquin Rojas – who commented that it was a lovely event in which people were able to have a grasp of Brazilian culture. The production truly felt like an escape to the Amazon jungle or the beaches of Rio, situated right in the centre of Brighton.
Opening the night was the sibling duo act Nick & Rio performing a laid-back acoustic set to open the stage. Armed with an acoustic guitar and a shiny tambourine, the duet nurtured a tranquil rhythm and beat. Both siblings shared and complimented their vocal duties, blending and harmonising their voices through their call and response sequences, saturating the room full of warmth and emotion. They channelled energy to perform their own original songs, whilst also covering some classics of the MPB genre – this brilliant performance set the tone for the rest of the evening.
The second act of the night was Mariana Decourt, an audio-visual artist with over a decade experience, and her friend Daniel Rodrigues, who continued the night performing a slightly-more energetic set. Decourt used her electric guitar to compliment her rich vocals to express emotion, whilst Rodrigues complimented this with his passionate trombone melodies. The musical performance showcased Decourt’s immersive guitar riffs playing off the smooth pitch-bending of Rodrigues’s trombone melodies. They harnessed this energy to broadcast a selection of Decourt’s original works, preparing us for the night’s headliners.
Borges Machado, a collaboration between local Brazilians Andre Borges and Fernando Machado, ended the night with psychedelic-inspired Brazilian pop. Inspired by older bands,such as Os Mutantes, Borges used his saxophone echoes whilst Machado used his rich guitar and vocals to build intrinsic compositions. A highlight of this set was Borges using a makeshift instrument made up of a pipe and metal object to create a unique cacophony of sounds to create music. Overall, this duo created a brilliant performance to end the night on a high.
Gainstage Promotions, in collaboration with The Caroline of Brunswick, delivered a spectacular night. From the comfort of Nick & Rio’s warmth to Borges Machado’s controlled psychedelic chaos, the evening perfectly presented traditional and experimental Brazilian music to a new audience. It was a memorable celebration of culture and music that left the city inspired.
A massive thank you for the performers and organisers for such a magical night, if you want to support them further feel free to check them out on social media (Instagram) here: