Underground musician Carioca left behind his electrical past in Progressive Rock in order to search for new expressions in Brazilian music. His first album is a fully acoustic, introspective voyage into the world’s greatest Rainforest, featuring 12-string guitar, mandolin, zither, tabla, flute and self-made percussion instruments.

Carioca is the term used to describe those originating from Rio de Janeiro. But there’s only one Carioca in the music scene in Brazil: Ronaldo Leite de Freitas, who took up this nickname in São Paulo after relocating from his native Rio de Janeiro to study music at University.

Recorded in 1980, Mistérios da Amazônia is also, at least to our knowledge, one of the first crowd-funding initiatives in the Brazilian music scene. Carioca, lacking the resources to pay for the studio and manufacturing fees, sold the album to fans, friends and independent record stores before recording it.

Carioca’s first work is a fascinating one-of-a-kind album, undoubtedly challenging to classify. Often compared to the path set by musicians such as Egberto Gismonti or Naná Vasconcelos, who were constantly seeking new musical expressions whilst retaining a Brazilian character.

Comes with a free Digital Download Card and a 4-page info sheet with detailed liner notes in English and Portuguese.