Terra * by Mariza (CD, Jan-2008, Times Square Records)

After "Fado em Mim" (2001), "Fado Curvo" (2003), "Transparente" (2005), wich join live shows in CD and DVD "Concerto Em Lisboa" (2006) and DVD "Live In London" (2004), Mariza is back, after three years, with a new album.

Terra, the fifth album by Portugal’s “Queen of Fado” coincides with a marathon 47-city US tour kicking off on Valentine’s Day in Chicago which should vault the chanteuse from cult status here.
On this album, Mariza is backed by a tasteful acoustic backing unit including six- and twelve-string guitar, upright bass, piano and drums. There’s a little bolero feel here as well as a somewhat noir cabaret sensibility and a few songs that stray toward more modern pop territory, with the omnipresent twelve-string adding an otherworldly, eerily ringing edge.

Terra is a balancing act between holding on to roots and reaching out to wider musical influences that's varied and accomplished but somehow less than the sum of its sumptuous parts. Mariza's crystal foghorn of a voice is as wonderful as ever, but after half a dozen plays, there’s not quite enough that really hangs in the memory or has that special spark of genius she's capable of delivering.

As can be expected, laments comprise much of this cd, most notably Já Me Deixou (Now It’s Left Me) and Alma De Vento (Soul of the Wind), with their dark swaying relentlessness. The most striking number on the album is Beijo De Saudade (Sentimental Kiss), its catchy 12-string melody set against restrained muted trumpet, the vocals getting all smoky on the second verse. It’s based on a poem by a famous Cape Verde poet, written as he lay dying in his hospital bed in Portugal, badly missing his native land. There’s also more upbeat material including the bouncy Rosa Branca (White Rose), whose narrator finds she’s danced so much that the flower she’s been wearing has fallen to pieces: “If you love roses so much why don’t you love me?” she inquires exasperatedly. As can be expected, the strongest songs here are the more traditional numbers: when they edge toward a more overtly commercial, contemporary American sound, both singer and band sound a little out of their element. The cd ends on a particularly haunting note with Morada Aberta (My Door Is Open), where Mariza asks the river to rise up and wash away every physical and metaphorical trace of the past.

Tracklist

01 .Ja Me Deixou
02 .Minh'Alma
03 .Rosa Branca
04 .Recurso
05 .Beijo De Saudade
06 .Vozes Do Mar
07 .Fronteira
08 .Alfama
09 .Tasco Da Mouraria
10 .Alma De Vento
11 .Se Eu Mandasse Nas Palavras
12 .As Guitarras
13 .Pequenas Verdades
14 .Morada Aberta