One Band, Several Universes

The opening of “Resiliência” is almost a trick. Airy guitar and harp suggest some cosmic-jazz drift before the track suddenly explodes into Tropicalia-flavoured orchestral pop, funky guitar-and-sax interplay and a final blast of fretwork. From there, the album keeps refusing to behave.

Sena’s guitar gets plenty of room to roam. “Doomscroll” mixes grungy chords, prog instincts and garage-psych attitude, while “Deusas” finds Santana-like melodic warmth meeting pulsating rock. Yet the guitar never completely takes over. Sax, keys, flute, percussion, bass, drums and strings are constantly part of the conversation. That collective approach is the real star of Contínua.

Brazilian Roots, Future Directions

The core sextet—Sena, Artu Bastos, Dan McLay, Jon Catanus, Ana Higuera and Jakob Leeson—recorded the fundamental tracks live from the studio floor, and you can hear that physical connection between the players. “Atende o Telefone” practically has the instruments chatting with one another, while “Razão” surrounds the guitar with Jessica Deutsch’s strings.

And then there’s “Invocada,” where samba-jazz starts smooth before turning into a full-speed jazz-fusion ride. “Ervas,” meanwhile, closes the album with sprawling psychedelic-rock energy that suggests King Gizzard may have wandered into the studio.

The great thing is that Contínua doesn’t feel like a band trying to prove how many genres it knows. These influences have become ingredients in something distinctly Orbital Ensemble. Album three could go almost anywhere. Honestly, that’s half the fun.

Header photo source: Mundial Montréal.