Explosive Material

Mona Gadêlha is an accomplished songwriter and a mature singer. Ten years after arriving in São Paulo, the musician released her first album. The long wait was worthwhile. Mona Gadêlha, the album, features special guest appearances by such great musicians that clearly state the respect that the artist has won in the São Paulo music and show business scene. Now comes her second album. It's natural to expect Cenas & Dramas to be more successful than the first album. Mona is singing and composing better than ever.

Jefferson de Souza, critic

Mona Gadêlha's cradle was Ceará (A state in the Northeast of Brazil. In Brazil, the Northeast is a cultural melting pot similar to the Mississippi delta, with strong grassroots music and a rich folk tradition, that has had considerable influence upon Brazilian culture). But that does not matter at all. Her music is not the kind that can be bound by geographical locations. It is hardly—or even not at all—regional. Which, let us say, cannot be but on the positive side when we take it into account.

Mona, as she became known at first among friends and soon in the music and show business environment, is rather an urban, cosmopolitan artist that reaches beyond boundaries. Perhaps this explains her earlier involvement with rock music in the mid-70s in Fortaleza (capital of Ceará state), then a stronghold of the most traditional kind of mainstream MPB (Brazilian Popular Music).

Mona had her debut at the First Rock Festival of Ceará in 1974. She was the only female performer at the event and right away became the muse of Ceará rock music. The fact is that she made it to the local scene and formed the groups Kaleidoscópio and Emoções Perigosas (The translation would be "Cheap Thrills" although the word "Perigosas" means `Dangerous').

In 1979 she was featured in the Massafeira collection, a double album featuring 20 artists that brought together two generations of Ceará musicians. The recording of the blues that Mona had written and was included in that collection, "Cor de Sonho", had the participation of well-known and widely respected musicians Robertinho do Recife (guitar) and Túlio Mourão (piano). Curiously enough, this track became a hit on local radio stations in her native Fortaleza. The collection Massafeira also served the purpose of bringing Mona to the south of Brazil.

After her trip to Rio de Janeiro—where the recordings were made—during which she took advantage of the opportunity and recorded backing vocals for Ednardo (local Ceará artist who achieved nationwide success) in the album that takes his name for a title, she realized that her career as an artist would have to take place in the south, mainly around the Rio-São Paulo axis. Nevertheless, it took her six years to pack up for good. Before that, she successfully pursued a bachelor's degree in Social Communication Science at the Federal University in Ceará. Meanwhile, she was featured in several collections and performed in many shows. One of these shows, entitled Emoções Perigosas, was staged all over the Northeast in `84, with successful reviews and billings.

Ten years after arriving in São Paulo, Mona has finally made it to her solo album by Movieplay. The long wait was worthwhile. Produced by Alexandre Fontanetti, Mona Gadêlha, the album, features special guest appearances by such great musicians that clearly state the respect that the artist has won along this decade in the São Paulo music and show business scene. It is easy to understand why a debut album can rely on the `little help' of so many good friends: Mona is an accomplished songwriter and a mature singer. Her album is a well-balanced mix of pop and MPB (Brazilian Popular Music)—in case we are allowed to say there is any kind of difference between them. Mona Gadêlha is a great promise for Brazilian music. Let no one say they have not been warned.

Jefferson de Souza is a music critic.

Bluesy Mona

A good partnership is everything.

The meeting of composer and interpreter Mona Gadêlha with musicians André Magalhães and Álvaro Faria resulted in a series of involving songs tied together by a subtle intentional concept that defines the new album of the artist from Ceará. Not that they have composed something together, but that they have worked around a vibrant singularity in the production and arrangements of this new album.

Mona Gadêlha is releasing her second album, Cenas & Dramas, filled with electronics intervention combined with simple and relaxed rhythms. Cenas & Dramas is trip hop, distorted and melody guitars with tons of ballad, blues and vaudeville. It is a pure reflex of the consistent life of this singer who was born in Ceará and lives in São Paulo.

More cosmopolitan, she comes with her second album, maturing the ideas of the first one, Mona Gadêlha, which brought songs like "Cinema Noir", broadcast in some national radio stations and MTV. The video clip debuted in other countries like Mexico, Spain and Portugal, confirming the versatility of the artist.

It's natural to expect this album to be more successful than the first one; Mona is singing and composing better than ever. The compositions depict facts of life: home desertion, passion, disillusionment, and loneliness. Such themes match perfectly with the "bluesy" voice of Mona.

Cinema is another motive of her songwriting. Songs like "Cine Insane Blues", "Mais um Romance" and "Johnny Vai pra Guerra?" suggest short movie stories. By the way, "Crepúsculo de uma Deusa" is a suggestive song that mixes trip hop and pop with a Brazilian stress. The songs on the album have many accents, as well as scenes and drama; they are destined to become hits. In a productive scene of Brazilian female voices, Mona Gadêlha is an artist who deals in a way not orthodox to MPB, pop rock, and blues. Although these are her influences, Mona has her own unique style.

Produced by André Magalhães (Aquilo Deu Nisso's drummer) and Álvaro Faria (awarded VU studio producer of publicity soundtracks), the new album has the special participation of Lelo Nazario, Toninho Ferragutti, César Maluf, Maurício Pereira, Paulo Padilha, Cláudio Faria, Emerson Vilani and Ricardo Cunha. Besides her own songs, Mona sings the compositions of Edvaldo Santana and Lobão, and new talents like Fernando Pereira, Marcos Andrada e Wilson Ferreira (Vultos, a band from São Paulo in the 80's), the fellows Lúcio Ricardo and Siegbert Franklin (author of the album cover & partner of Mona Gadêlha.)

Sérgio Barbo is a critic and music researcher.

Mona Gadêlha's comments about the songs on the album Cenas & Dramas:

1. Crepúsculo de uma Deusa (Mona Gadêlha)—When I watched Sunset Boulevard (Crepúsculo dos Deuses, Gods' Twilight in Portuguese) I was very impressed with the interpretation of Gloria Swanson as Norma Desmond. I started thinking about fame and decadence. I wrote the song almost like a lullaby to "put stars to bed".

2. Mais um Romance (Mona Gadêlha)—Born with a nostalgic intendment of "disco music," but the arrangement of Álvaro Faria brought another language and more sensuality.

3. Johnny Vai pra Guerra? (Mona Gadêlha)—A dialogue with teenagers. I made it thinking of a 17-year-old friend who wanted to leave his parents.

4. O Amante (Mona Gadêlha)—A joke with infidelity—this feeling that sometimes assaults all of us human beings.

5. Farsantes Amantes (Marcos Andrada/Wilson Ferreira) Music from the time of the band Vultos, pioneer of rock music in São Paulo in the '80s. It was released in a Vultos LP and we decided to record it again with another arrangement. I even went to one of their concerts when I first arrived in São Paulo in '86.

6. Bem-Me-Quer (Onde Você Anda?) (Siegbert Franklin/Mona Gadêlha)—This is one of my partnerships with the singer, guitarist, and designer Siegbert Franklin from Ceará. When we were teenagers in Fortaleza, we created the rock band "Kaleidoscópio". That was the end of the '70s and we were having fun being rebels in Ceará.

7. Ouvindo o Coração (Edvaldo/Gildo Passos)—Edvaldo is one of my favorite composers. When I made my first album he prepared a cassette with several songs I liked. The first one I recorded was "Sinal". This is blues, absolutely impassioning.

8. Duro (Fernando Pereira)—Fernando is another composer I adore. This is the first time he has recorded and I feel honored by that. I had a cassette with many of his songs, but "Duro" was suggested by Álvaro Faria. These are lyrics I would like to have written.

9. Cine Insane Blues (Lúcio Ricardo)—Lúcio Ricardo is a singer and composer from Ceará. Together with Siegbert Franklin they were the legend rock group "Perfume Azul" in Fortaleza. We did many shows together and I am happy for being able to record him. That's my homage to the generation that initiated a pop-rock scene in Ceará.

10. Por Tudo Que For (Lobão/Bernardo Vilhena)—I adore the songs of Lobão and this is one of my favorites. I played this song for André on a cassette—just voice and acoustic guitar. He suggested doing this, with fewer instruments and in a lower tune.

Mona's Webpage: http://www.uol.com.br/monagadelha

How to contact Mona: outubro@uol.com.br   or Tel:(+5511) 5584-8108 (talk to Silvânia Barbosa).

All this material was translated from the Portuguese and organized by Marcos Borges, a Brazilian screenwriter/designer graduated in journalism. He lives in the Black Forest in Germany, where he works in the Media Village design studio. Some of his screenplays can be found in his homepage: http://mborges.homepage.com. Or you can get in touch with him at marcosborges@hotmail.com

The Lyrics

Crepúsculo de uma Deusa (Mona Gadêlha) Quem vai te acalentar Nessa noite fria? Quem vai te beijar Nessa cama vazia? Eu nunca te disse sim Eu nada te prometi Eu só estou aqui de passagem Eu tenho que cuidar de mim Não me olhe com esse olhar estranho Não me chame, não diga meu nome Não adianta, eu não vou te ouvir Não faça cena, não Não faça drama Não me chame, não me telefone Já percebi que é hora de sumir Quem vai te acalentar Nessa noite fria? Quem vai te beijar Nessa cama vazia? Eu nunca te disse sim Eu nada te prometi Eu só entrei na tua história Como quem veio pra se divertir Vim conhecer o teu olhar noturno Mas tuas fotos me chamaram mais atenção Veja, o mundo gira, o mundo é cruel Quem vai guardar agora Aquele velho troféu? Quem vai te acalentar Nessa noite fria? Quem vai te beijar Nessa cama vazia?

Twilight of a Goddess (Mona Gadêlha) Who is going to warm you in this cold night? Who is going to kiss you In this empty bed? I never said yes I never promised anything I'm here just passing by I have to take care of myself Don't look at me with this strange look Don't call me, don't say my name Don't try, I won't listen to you Don't make a scene, don't Don't make a drama Don't call me, don't phone me I realized it's time to disappear  Who is going to warm you In this cold night? Who is going to kiss you In this empty bed? I never said yes I haven't promised anything I only entered into your story Like somebody who came to have fun I came to know your nocturnal look But your photos called my attention more Look, the world turns, the world is cruel Who's going to keep That old trophy? Who is going to warm you In this cold night? Who is going to kiss you In this empty bed?

 

Bem-me-quer (Onde Anda Você?) (Siegbert Franklin/Mona Gadêlha) Onde você anda? Meu coração fica louco Se não respira teu olhar Onde você anda? Minha voz se acaba Se não fala o seu nome E quanto tempo você vai ficar longe? Os amigos dizem que eu Já não sou a mesma Na fotografia beijo seu rosto Do quarto imagino sua voz na sala E toda manhã eu penso Que vou te encontrar Na rua, num lugar qualquer Quando volto Tudo é tão vazio Só a flor ainda insiste em dizer que você Me quer

He Loves Me (Where Are You?) (Siegbert Franklin/Mona Gadêlha) Where are you? My heart gets crazy If it doesn't breathe your look Where are you? My voice fails If it doesn't speak your name And how long are you going to stay far off? The friends say I'm not the same anymore On the photo I kiss your face From the bedroom I imagine your voice in the living room And every morning I think I'm going to meet you In the street, in any place When I come back Everything is so empty Only the flower still insists to say that you Love me

 

Por Tudo Que For (Lobão/Bernardo Vilhena) E depois, a luz se apagou E eu não consigo mais ficar sozinho aqui Sem você é tão ruim Não tem sentido, prazer, não há nada Por favor, não me interprete mal Eu não queria e nem devia te magoar O tempo vem , o tempo vai Passa por mim meio assim, meio assim devagar Vou dormir sentindo O que a solidão pode fazer A um coração ferido Por saber que o erro era meu , só meu Já passou, agora já passou Mas foi tão triste Que eu não quero nem lembrar Ver você, ter você E querer mais de nós dois Não tem nada demais E pensar, você aparecer pela janela Tão bonita de manhã Vem pra mim e não vai mais Me abraça, me abraça, me abraça Por tudo que for

For Everything (Lobão/Bernardo Vilhena) And afterwards, the lights went off And I cannot stay here alone anymore Without you it's so awful It doesn't make sense, there is no pleasure, there is nothing Please don't get me wrong I didn't want to hurt you and I shouldn't Time comes and goes Passing me slowly so, so I'm going to sleep feeling What loneliness can cause To a hurting being For knowing that the fault was mine only mine It's already over, it's over now, But it was so sad That I don't even want to remember To see you, to have you And to want more of the two of us That's not too much And thinking of you to appear at the window So beautiful in the morning Come to me, and don't leave anymore Hold me, hold me, hold me For everything

 

Ouvindo o Coração (Edvaldo Santana/Gildo Passos) Não há jeito de esquecer a dor De se perder alguém Não há vento que espalhe as cinzas Do que se gosta ainda Quando chega a hora de ir embora Não importa Me bate um frio febril Embriagado eu estou Não importa quanto tempo essa vida Me lançou na solidão Vadiando pelas ruas, pelas bocas, Pelos bares Sem destino Procurando uma emoção Se um dia você ouvir Essa voz ao meio-dia Vai saber que há em mim Um sonho onde mora você Pra quem correu atrás E já passou muito sufoco Amar é muito mais Só cama é muito pouco Amor é paciência Carinho, atenção Amor é como um blues Ouvindo o coração

Listening to the Heart (Edvaldo Santana/Gildo Passos) There is no way to forget the pain Of losing someone There is no wind that spreads the ashes Of what one still likes When the time comes to go Doesn't matter A feverish cold hits me Drunk I am It doesn't matter how much time this life Threw me into loneliness Idling through the streets, through the ghettos, Through the pubs Without destination, Looking for emotion If one day you hear This voice at noon You will know that there is A dream in me in which you live For somebody who fought And who already suffered a lot To love is much more Only bed is not enough Love is patience, Caress, attention Love is like a blues Listening to the heart.

Send your
comments to
Brazzil