If Mutantes' first album sounded like a bunch of Brazilian teenagers mashing up the Beatles and Marcos Valle while tripping on acid, their second LP sounds like the band falling completely over the edge. While the Baptistas didn't abandon their pop sensibilities altogether with Mutantes, the structure and bubblegum feel of their debut feels largely stripped away. Instead, songs like the spacey and vocodered "Dia 36" and the layered "Dois Mil e Um" feel like mini-suites, compact rock operas where Mutantes could accomplish in 3 or 4 minutes what took other bands 10. Of course, there's still the light-hearted "Rita Lee" and fuzzed-out "Magica," not to mention the short and sweet "Algo Mais" which probably could have been a hit in the US; if it weren't in Portuguese. In my humble opinion, this record comes in a close second to the debut record, but at the same time I can't deny the stoned beauty of the pair of closing tracks, "Qualquer Bobagem" and "Caminhante Noturno."  If you haven't heard Mutantes' first three albums, you owe it to yourself! 11 tracks, 42+ minutes.

• black vinyl pressing
  
• remastered audio
• original release year: 1969
  
• music label: Vinyl Lovers 2008

reviewed by Chris Lemon-Red 03/2009