BSM – Batucada Sound Machine

Media

This debut... with its related funk family of samba, hip-hop, salsa and dub – all the time laced with a Brazilian spice – should propel the Batucada Sound Machine to where they belong; in the spotlight.

Peter Thorton, Rip It Up

As the numbers suggest, the sound BSM make is massive, with a horn section, a seven-piece percussion line-up, MC and drums. Their high-energy gigs take in a breathtaking variety of tempos, timings, beats, styles and rhymes. They sing in Portuguese, Spanish and English and have drawn favourable comparisons with Ozomatli, Manu Chao and Chico Science.

Claire Prentice, Scotland on Sunday

…Take stand-out Cumbia del Cambio, a … track that starts with a skanking dub groove, gives way to a more frenetic Latin rhythm that's backed up by clattering percussion, then it warps into a sonic, banging dancefloor anthem until it ends with a scream and celebratory blasts of horns.

Scott Kara, New Zealand Herald (link to review)

…as kinetic and unconfined as any dance record you'll hear anywhere in the world…

Nick Bollinger, Radio New Zealand National (mp3 sound file)

It's a form of dance music that lets you get up and close to your partner, and that is hot! So not only will you get a fantastic album if you buy this, there's a good chance that played to the right partner you'll also get…

Jamie Larnach, Amplifier (link to review)

Festival headliners sooner rather than later is my guess: and with barbecue season almost on us they will be getting their time in the sun at my place, that's for sure.

Graham Reid, elsewhere.co.nz (link to review)

…An infectious mix of driving Brazilian rhythms, funk-style guitar licks and dub horns, this album is tailor-made for the upcoming summer, and will no doubt be embraced by the majority of kiwis looking for their fix of energetic, upbeat grooves.

Tom B, The Set (link to review)

BSM are incontrovertible proof that the cutting edge of Latin music has reached the Antipodes.

Nige Tassel, WOMAD

The stand-out acts for rocking were NZ's own Batucada Sound Machine, America's Ozomatli, France's Les Yeux Noirs, Belgium-Congo's Zap Mama and Senegalese hip-hopsters Daara-J.

Virginia Winder reporting on WOMAD 2005, Taranaki Daily News

Rivers of Rhyme, the debut single, sums up what this band is capable of in one track. There are as many flavours and influences in that song that other artists struggle to pack into one album.

Peter Thorton, Rip It Up

Press Kit

PDF for download. Includes band and band members' bios and photos, contact details. Click here to download. This is a low-res version (1.2mb). A higher-res version is available on request.

Downloadable photos

High resolution photos for press use. Click images on the right to download. There are more photos in the set available in both landscape and portrait format which are available on request.

Publicity contact

Publicity:

Band Manager: Scott Grafton: