Various Artists - FUNK.BR - SÃO PAULO

2LP Gatefold, with essay by Felipe Maia. NTS presents funk.BR - São Paulo, an exploration into the magical and menacing world of the Brazilian city’s current baile funk sounds. São Paulo has built up a reputation for its confrontational funk output over the past decade, and the emergence of the mandelão sound has underlined this. This riotous strain of baile funk has been tailor made for the favela parties (so-called bailes or fluxos) of the Brazilian megalopolis. Played across the bailes do Helipa, Bega, Marcone and Casinhas, mandelão now spans a wide range of sub-genres; from hypnotic ritmado to brutal bruxaria. This 22-track collection of previously unreleased songs finds starlet producers like Blakes, Arana, and Bonekinha Iraquiana sat alongside scene stalwarts and national icons like Deekapz, Mu540, and the inimitable MC GW. It all serves to make funk.BR - São Paulo a vital snapshot of this sensational city’s musical magic.