Os Mutantes – Haih Or Amortecedor

Haih or Amortecedor represents quite an event, really - after all, it's not every day that a legendary Brazilian psychedelic rock band releases its first new album since 1974. Masterminded by the band's founder Sergio Dias, this album is the follow-up to a few isolated reunion shows by the band around the world in 2006. Stylistically varied, sung in Portuguese and somewhat weighed down under the band's history and huge hiatus, this isn't an album that many will leap into enthusiastically, but it does have longer term rewards.At no point does Haih really rock very hard. Instead, its sound is built on slick, tropical rhythms driven by jaunty drumming and plentiful keyboards. The vocals are a pleasing mix of the male (as on 'O Careca') and female, as on the enjoyably bouncy "Querida Querida". At the album's arguable core are two sweetly serenading tracks in the middle of the record. 'O Mensageiro' in particular is a highlight, moving between delicate acoustic sections and passages of slightly more rocking electric material, featuring some impressive guitar work.Given the constant interest maintained by the music itself, and the quality of the vocals and melodies, the language barrier isn't a problem to the enjoyment of those of us whose Portuguese is a tad rusty. What makes Haih a challenging album is not the language per se, but rather the lack of key reference points for us to hang on to. This is isn't a particularly hook-reliant album (with the exception of the likes of 'Querida Querida') and instead its appeals are more slowly unfolding than most. The fact that the record opens with a recording of Vladimir Putin making a speech to the Russian army tells us straight away that we're in for something a little odd, and the ensuing music bears this out. But Os Mutantes' idiosyncrasies are endearing, and while such a release out of the blue isn't a likely instant purchase for many, it is still a rewarding one when it gradually works its charms.Os Mutantes on Myspace