Anastacia Azevedo is pop rocker from Nordeste, Brazil with an aggressive urban style. "Amanaiara" was released on Piranha in April, 2004.

The music of Anastacia Azevedo is upbeat, Brazilian pop rock with a bit of funk and traditional ska mixed in throughout. Its very dance oriented, with pounding aggressive beats. There are some beautiful acoustic elements like the acoustic guitar work in "Xaxado," and the craviola in "Amanaiara" and "Rado." Then there are some interesting electronic elements like the hip hop club sound of "Pe De Coco," in which the plodding synthesizer, and vocal samples make the song sound more like a contemporary remix of an old Gloria Estefan song. The fast and relentless until it reaches the mello "Raios De Sol." This song is more of lounge style smooth jazz composition, yet even it is careful to retain a beat suitable for slow dances. Immediately after this, however, the album escalates into the catchy "O Rio" and the energy continues until the end of the album.

Some people can't get enough of South American rhythms. If you are the kind of person that continually craves this music, then Anastacia Azevedo might be for you. I, on the other hand, tire quickly of persistent, peppy dance tunes that contain no depth, and no value other than their ability to get clubbers out of their seats. Of all the songs on "Amanaiara" only "O Rio" possesses the beauty to lend itself to repeated play, everything else seems to exist just for the beat.

Key Song: "O Rio"

Reviewed by: Jared St. Martin Brown