DJ Dolores

DJ Dolores — a man, by the way — has been pursuing combinations of electronics with Northeastern Brazilian folk forms for over ten years. The mix of fast paced, percussive folk forms like Forro and the area’s huge love of reggae and other Caribbean sounds feels like a natural fit to the double-time rhythms that Dolores favours. Unfortunately, he’s never been able to put it all together for a fully satisfying album and 1 Real is a cut below his previous efforts. For all the mixing, matching and sampling there are no memorable songs whatsoever. Where movements such as Baile Funk and groups like CSS and Bondo Do Role have hardened up Brazilian beats for international audiences, none of Dolores’s work hits like that. This music is hindered by hyperactive drum programming with no momentum behind it. Interesting samples of folkloric instruments stay static in the mix, while the vocal samples are ear-catching for a few seconds before lapsing into the background. This music, with supposed futurism on its sleeve, sounds more like Transglobal Underground’s ’90s global mash-ups.