Capital Inicial

Capital Inicial emerged as a post-punk and new wave outfit that achieved notable commercial traction through seven albums issued from 1982 to 1996. Ex-members of Renato Russo’s trailblazing post-punk group Aborto Elétrico united to launch the band and sustained the same musical approach. Drummer Felipe Lemos and bassist Flávio Lemos, guitarist Loro Jones formerly of Blitz 64, and singer Dinho Ouro Preto—all rooted in Brasília—made up the lineup. Because the capital city emptied of politicians each weekend, its inherent chill fostered a fertile environment for disaffected youth to channel aggression into punk ensembles. Capital Inicial drew from Aborto Elétrico’s songbook and traced a parallel path. Their initial Rio appearance, shared with sister band Legião Urbana (likewise born from Aborto Elétrico’s remnants), occurred on 23 July 1983 when they supported Lobão at Circo Voador. The 1984 single “Descendo o Rio Nilo” backed with “Leve Desespero,” issued on Epic, earned modest notice; the B-side later appeared in the film Areias Escaldantes. By April 1985 “Descendo o Rio Nilo” had landed on the CBS compilation Os Intocáveis. The following year the band cut its debut album, Capital Inicial, for Polygram; the set featured the hit tracks “Psicopata,” “Música Urbana,” and “Fátima,” moved 200,000 units, and launched an extended touring cycle. Keyboardist Bozzo Barretti, already present on the first record, became a full member for the 1987 follow-up Independência, whose pop-leaning sound moved roughly half the prior total. That November the group opened for Sting before a capacity crowd at Maracanã. Their December 1988 release, Você Não Precisa Entender, leaned heavily commercial and shifted only 50,000 copies. Sensing they had alienated core punk listeners without attracting a pop audience, the band swapped standardized keyboards for abrasive guitars on the 1990 album Todos os Lados, yet the shift arrived too late to reverse declining sales that barely exceeded 30,000. The 1991 LP Eletricidade moved scarcely 20,000 units. The ensuing downturn prompted Barretti and Ouro Preto to exit and form Vertigo, while Murilo Lima stepped in as vocalist for the independent sixth album, Rua 47, recorded in 1994. A live set, Ao Vivo, appeared on Rede Brasil in 1996; Lima departed two years later. The group maintained a measure of visibility well into the subsequent decade, issuing the well-received albums Atrás dos Olhos (1998), Rosas e Vinho Tinto (2002), Gigante! (2004), Eu Nunca Disse Adeus (2007), and Das Kapital (2010).