As if its name didn’t already challenge enough preconceived notions, Brazilian Girls (the band members are not Brazilian and only one of them is female) continue to push the musical envelope. The New York City-based group—singer Sabina Sciubba, keyboardist Didi Gutman, bassist Jesse Murphy and drummer Aaron Johnston—just released its second album, Talk To La Bomb, an aggressive-sounding blend of sexy electro pop, rock and dance styles, which is somewhat of a contrast to the lounge sound from the band’s 2005 self-titled debut album.
“We weren’t trying to do, we just did,” explains Sciubba about changing the musical approach for Talk To La Bomb. “We came off the road and immediately went into writing and recording the record. I think four months total. We didn’t have much time to think about it.”
Another reason for recording Talk To La Bomb was partly to add new music to the live repertoire. “On the road, we yearned for other forms of expression on stage,” she says, “but we only had those songs, and we had to promote the [first] record, so we had to play the songs.”
For fans of pulsating and sophisticated dance and pop music with a global flair, the energetic and edgy Talk To La Bomb delivers. “Jique,” the opening track, is a throbbing electro pop number, sung in Sciubba’s seductive vocal delivery, which sets the tone for the rest of the album. Another in the electronic musical vein is the atmospheric “Sexy Asshole,” which despite its title, is a romantic track with a German lyric. “It’s a straightforward love song,” says Sciubba. “It’s open to any and all interpretations.”
Part of what makes Brazilian Girls’ music distinctive is that Sciubba sings in five different languages: Italian, German, English, French and Spanish. In some cases, Sciubba sings all of those languages in the same sentence. Her ability to be multilingual is a reflection of her European upbringing (Sciubba was born in Rome to Italian and German parents). “I always tell people that all you have to do is live in a country for two years and speak the language,” she says.
Sciubba, already a professional singer, came to New York for its music scene six years ago. It was in New York where she and her bandmates became Brazilian Girls. “I felt like many Europeans do—that the local scene was limited,” she remembers. “I just said, ‘Fuck it. A lot of good music is recorded in New York and a lot of great musicians live there.’”
Oct. 5. Webster Hall, 125 E. 11th St. (betw. 3rd & 4th Aves.), 212-35
