Track Listing

1. Momento
2. Bring Back the Love - Brazilian Girls, Bebel Gilberto
3. Close to You
4. Os Novos Yorkinos
5. Azul
6. Caçada
7. Night and Day
8. Tranquilo - Bebel Gilberto, Orquestra Imperial
9. Um Segundo
10. Cadê Você?
11. Words

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10243 in Music
• Brand: Dig
• Released on: 2007-04-24
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .22 pounds

Album Description
2007 release, the third album from the undisputed Queen of new Brazilian music. Bebel is the multi-talented daughter of Brazilian legend Joao Gilberto who has created her own musical path while also embracing her past. Recorded in Rio de Janeiro, London and New York. Momento features titles penned by Bebel, producer Guy Sigsworth (known for his collaborations with Bjork and as being a former member of Bomb The Bass) and The Brazilian Girls. Momento's sound is perfectly poised between the crystalline, Electronic simplicity of her debut album Tanto Tempo and the acoustic sophistication of her second, self-titled opus. V2. 2007.

Amazon.com
Three discs into her acclaimed solo career, it's a no-brainer that the Brazilian pop charms of Bebel Gilberto will conjure a slew of beach-inspired adjectives. "Refreshing," "wind-swept" and "sun-kissed" spring to mind. Momento continues Gilberto's trend of crafting sultry scenes of afternoon delight via tunes that both adhere to traditions and sound ultra-modern. But she also mixes things up a bit in the process. Gilberto's sensual delivery--featured here in English and in Portuguese--hovers in and around each song, more an extension of the rhythms than the showpiece. Make no mistake, though: Gilberto's vocal work is a thing of beauty. She again blends bossa nova, samba, pop and electronica flourishes, but no one genre overpowers any other. Liliting guitars give way to pulsing percussion and horns, which crash against loops and samples. Gilberto coos amid the catchy club flavor of "Bring Back the Love," and the moonlit "Close to You" recalls Sade. The daughter of Brazilian guitarist Joao Gilberto even tackles Cole Porter's "Night and Day," recasting it as a hushed moment of bossa loveliness. And the title track is a collage of sonic secrets and memories. Perfect for a patio brunch--or an evening under the stars. --Joey Guerra

Customer Reviews

Good, but inconsistent for Bebel's treble effort
I've had this album since February as part of a pre-release, and I was told that 2 of the tracks may change. Surprisingly, they kept all of the pre-release tracks intact, without any additions or subtractions to it.

The first thing people may notice is the inclusion of more English-language songs. Honestly, I think it tends to take away more from the album than adding to it, especially when there are grammatical errors, like in "Words" when Bebel sings, "I need some words just to explain my pain and describe my misbehave".

The album opens with the title track, "Momento", which is a nice little relaxing diddy without too much fuss, much like much of her beach-lounge music. "Bring Back the Love" is a more upbeat-dance tune with just a bit of electronica thrown in. I found that the repetition of the words "bringing back the love" and the vocals do not match the background beat/music. "Close To You" is a nice romantic song, and probably my favorite of the English-spoken songs (with Portuguese thrown in) on the album. It's got a nice low-key intstrumental background. In "Os Novos Yorkinos", Bebel sings with Sabina Sciubba (who doesn't sing, and speaks 2 lines in the whole track) of Brazilian Girls (a group with none of the members from Brasil) is a light, fun, acoustic song without too much substance, but is pleasant to listen to.

"Azul" is one of my favorite tracks, which the instrumentals highlight Bebel's voice very well, and is another slower romantic song with some acoustics in the mix. "Cacada" is an upbeat samba-ish song with drums in the middle part of the song, it makes for good listening. "Night and Day" is my other favorite English song (entirely in English), is a very lazy love song with mainly an acoustic guitar serving as the instrumental. It complements a rainy day very well. "Tranquilo" has a very Mexican cha-cha sound to it, which sounds out of place at first. The song is so-so without any substance at all.

"Um Segundo" is another song that doesn't really fit into any category with mainly an acoustic guitar and some light drumming to ompliment more upbeat vocals. "Cade Voce" is my favorite song on the whole album, with the intro being an acoustic strumming which then stems into lush instrumentation and more lush vocals. The enunciation of Bebel's lyrics stand out in a very good way. It has a very relaxed feel to it, with background singers oohing and aahing along with 2 accompanying violins/violas towards the end. "Words" is an so-so song which is entirely sung mostly in English. It sounds more like filler, like some of the other songs on this album with minimal background music and not much in the way of vocals.

Overall, this album was slightly disappointing. I think her trying to be more mainstream in the States is taking away from the overall polish of the album, and too many of the songs sound like filler, and it wouldn't be a stretch to say they sound pretty similar. The songs I did like though, I liked a lot with the varying types of instrumentation.

Recommended tracks: "Cade Voce", "Azul", "Close To You"

Bebel Gilberto does it again!
Along with Ceu she is one of my favorite Brazilian singers and have to say, bought this one more hoping for the best. After her previous releases I thought to myself "Well it cant get better than this" and while maybe I can't say she has improved this is still up there with the rest of her releases.

Soft vocals over an almost African rhythm that just blend together so well. Yeh this is quality lounge music, this is music for the summer, long lazy days having a drink with friends, just being alone after a hard day or a long drive.

Probably the only thing I dislike on this CD are when she sings in English. Give me that Portuguese any day!

Backdrop for Romance
Music can transport, intoxicate, induce dreams and inspire delicious fantasies, ripe for enacting. Bebel Gilberto achieves this and more with the release of her third effort, "Momento".

The sensual, slow burn of her vocals and rythym allow the listener to get carried away to another place, a place where time stands still, begging one to abandon all earthly cares in favor of romantic splendor. "Momento", the opening track and CD title, peaks into Gilberto's world, with a poetic recount of pieces of her personal puzzle. "Bring Back the Love" includes a hushed moan in the background, with a steady beat and almost chant like command....

"Close to You" is about as sensual as anything you are apt to hear these days. It absolutely implores the listener to drop the material concerns to beckon one's lover..... sexy and sensual indeed.

Gilbeto's take on the standard " Night and Day" breathes new life into a romantic classic. She whispers through the urgency of this song with an understated passion, leading one to believe that the object of affection will receive the boil over of her desire. Such delivery is what illustrates a mood, making for true "mood" music.

The remaining tunes are at turns festive, contemplative and always engaging. Give way to the temptation; Bebel Gilberto offers a sublime summer album that is guarenteed to satisfy.