Holy. F&*(ing. Shit.
Every single time Michigan based producer Sango releases a tune I seem to be vomiting sheer bliss from his beats. While this is both a questionable overreaction and mildly graphic, Sango is a damn good producer who never seems to disappoint.
With his self-released LP Da Rocinha 2, he pushes his Latin-influenced beats, old school R&B samples and straight booty shakin’ sound to a new head spinning level. The opening track, ‘Pra Nós,’ alone made me yell profanities from overwhelming excitement. These sentiments continued to happen as I listened to the LP at least fifteen times through. What’s great about Da Rocinha 2 is that it flows like a solid mixtape. Both in context and shuffled around, each song had its own distinct flavor which created fantastically rich sonic landscape.
The song titles are mostly in Portuguese which makes it an even more deliciously diverse album. The bumpin’ Latin sounds coming out of tracks like ‘Três Horas,’ ‘Especial,’ ‘Pôr do Sol,’ ‘Nossa Noite,’ and ‘Me dê Amor’ gives Sango’s production style a new flair. After his collaboration with B. Lewis for their track ‘Não é Nada,’ that distinct sound and driving force melded itself in Sango’s current productions. The Latin influences mixed with his funky, bass heavy hip hop beats makes Da Rocinha 2 a ridiculously great ride.
Sango keeps us on our toes with intertwining R&B samples and sexy reconstruction of those beats for a fantastic take on old favorites. ‘Baile Somebody’ sent me on (another) Aaliyah kick and made me yearn for an old school Timbaland. Sango’s chops and cuts makes the otherwise nostalgic track become distinctly his own. It has a similar flavor to his ‘Suit and Tie’ remix or even ‘Nujabes Juke’ — really tight beats and gorgeously executed.
He does this again in ‘Oi (Interlúdio)’ which pulls in a sample from Marques Houston. This interlude serves as the shift in focus for the LP, with the later tracks taking on a dark, experimental ambience. The Latin sounds and nod to the past threads its way into the songs, but the overall vibe reverberates Sango’s signature aesthetic. This is the late-night portion of the album, which also made it my favorite part of Da Rocinha 2. It drips sex and bass making me crave more.
Since the LP is short and sweet, sitting at thirteen total tracks running for just under forty minutes, it makes it easy to consume endlessly. Every tracks is phenomenal, but some personal favorites of mine were ‘Pra Nós,’ ‘Me dê Amor,’ ‘Amor Rocinha,’ ‘Oi (Interlúdio),’ ‘Por Tudo,’ ‘Especial,’ and ‘Nossa Noite.’
Do him a solid and buy the album off his Bandcamp page for only a buck.
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