BaianaSystem

BaianaSystem originated as a Brazilian endeavor centered on broadening the expressive range of the Bahian electric guitar through sustained exchange with diverse musical traditions. Invented in Salvador-Bahia in the 1940s, the instrument itself gave rise to the trio eletrico format, a mobile, high-volume sound system. The group crafts flowing, forward-leaning compositions that fuse psychedelic samba with dubwise reggae, ijexá, and ska pulses while merging jam-band improvisation with an array of Afro-Latin styles including MPB, frevo, Afrobeat, dancehall, cumbia, afaje, chula, cabula, electronica, and pagoda. Although their approach later shifted, the guiding principle on the self-titled 2010 debut was to forge fresh hybrids by positioning the guitar as a second lead voice within a live P.A. setup in which the deejay and lead singer converse with the trio, all enveloped in dubwise production layered over frevo, samba, and pagoda rhythms. Their first public appearances took place on national festival stages.

Russo Passapusso (Roosevelt Ribeiro de Carvalho) handles lead vocals and toasting, supported by founding guitarist Robertinho Barreto, bassist and producer Seko Marcello, and percussionist and drummer Filipe Cartaxo. Such intense touring demand left scant room for studio work, resulting in just three EPs across the subsequent six years. The follow-up album Duas Cidades, first tested before hundreds of thousands on a Carnival stage, entered the charts immediately and marked a deliberate turn toward recorded output. Thereafter the quartet issued three further EPs alongside two charting full-lengths, 2017’s Outras Cidades and the long-awaited 2019 release O Futuro Não Demora.

Robertinho Barreto, formerly of Lampirônicos, launched the project in Bahia in 2007, aiming to merge the trio eletrico’s sonic force with the Jamaican sound-system model and the full spectrum of rhythms shared by Bahia and Kingston. The four musicians refined their approach through private rehearsals and local public performances for nearly two years before signing with Garimpo Musica. The self-titled album featured guest contributions from Lucas Santtana and B. Negão, quickly gained traction among independent club DJs, and dominated alternative radio; its growing reputation eventually reached mainstream listeners and fostered an intensely devoted audience comparable to Phish’s, driving the record onto the charts. Continued road work, studio exploration, and press coverage occupied the band for six years, during which they managed only three EPs. Seeking greater autonomy, they recorded and issued Duas Cidades independently. The album expanded on the debut’s ingredients with heightened electronic textures and spatial depth, incorporating beats and samples while introducing Afro-funk, rocksteady, and electro elements. Shortly before its release they performed on the main Carnival stage in Bahia, earning three encores and extending their set to twice the scheduled duration.

Despite relentless touring, the musicians learned to compose and track material while traveling. The next year they released Outras Cidades, a collection of remixes drawn from both albums that presented newly arranged versions performed alongside DJs and producers Chico Correa, Digitaldubs, ATTOOXXA, and Maga Bo. Further touring carried the record through clubs across Brazil, South America, and into the Caribbean. The quartet also served as session players on projects by Vanessa da Mata, Heavy Baile, Plural, and Matriz. They performed throughout Europe and South America while continuing to develop material on the road. In late 2018 they returned to the studio and opened 2019’s O Futuro Não Demora with a radically reworked tribal electro-dub reading of “Agua” by Antonio Carlos Jobim and Vinicius Moraes, assisted by guests Manu Chao, Vandal, Curumin, Edgar, and Orquestra Afrosinfônica.