Where in the world is Lani?

Tonight I had a truly Brazilian experience with my friend Caina. She is friends with some musicians here in Porto Alegre, Brazil and one of her friend´s bands was having a CD lauch at a local bar for their samba rock EP.

We hit the bar at 11pm, but nothing really started until after midnight when the 6 piece band came on to perform. Singer, bass guitar, lead guitar, drummer and 2 percussionists (bongos and all other percussion) lit up the stage and it was fantastic!

The music is a blend of traditional Brazilian samba (one, two, three; one, two, three) and more modern rock, with lyrics that focus on love, injustice and general life in Brazil. This music is so passionate and meaningful, but still fun and lighhearted in other ways. I am beginning to understand more and more portuguese, so some of the songs also had meaning for me as well - the others were translated by my mates in between beers!

We danced all night, and then hung out with the band afterwards for chats in a mix of portuguese and english - very cool!

I think I was the only gringa at the bar, so it was a very Brazilian experience indeed & i loved every minute of it! We bought the CD of the band to listen to and its become an instant favourite on my iPod selection....

Ciao from the dancefloor!

Lani