Surforeggae in Concert fills Banespa in a major show for new names in National Reggae!

On the 25th, at the Banespa sports club, the 1st Surforeggae in Concert took place. After much struggle, missed connections and other obstacles, we managed to put on our show with established bands and our independent allies. Scheduled to start at 10 p.m., the audience was arriving in large groups at the venue, which was already expected, since all advance tickets — around 4,000 — had already sold out. With Natiruts, Circuladô de Fulô and three more bands chosen by the public in our poll, the show was set. But what about Dagô & Radical Roots? Unfortunately, the organizers, who also handle the financial side of the event, dropped the ball with the Surforeggae crew, with the Central Reggae folks — the label the artist is linked to — and above all with Dagô Miranda, who had promised a great show. That was the sad part of the story, because we really wanted to showcase this artist so the crowd could feel the quality of the new heavyweights of National Reggae. Well, let's get to what went down at the 1st Surforeggae in Concert. Split across two stages, the event began to flow, but for now only on the covered stage in the Banespa gymnasium. With the famous heavy tracks from DJs Tux and Zambol, the crowd was already warming up for the start of the event. At approximately 10:30 p.m., the band that placed first in the Surforeggae poll, Rastaquilha, took the stage. A great show that really fired up the crowd.

RASTAQUILHA

With some Bob Marley covers, the vibe was inevitable. Playing songs from their new cd, Rastaquilha, it was clear the reception was very good. They even do a version of a Gladiators track that appears on the cd. Vocalist Diogo (photo), together with the beautiful backing vocalist Renata (photo), made the show flow perfectly until the end. Mission accomplished — time to leave the stage to the guys from Súditos do Reggae.

SÚDITOS DO REGGAE

Second place in the poll, the guys got ready quickly for their performance. The idea of playing Bob Marley covers was almost standard, and they opened with the beautiful "One Drop". The guys have a good set of original songs and once again the work was recognized in tracks like "Senzala" and "Tchau Neurônios". Coca (photo), the band's vocalist, carried the crowd with him to the end, and just like Rastaquilha, Súditos do Reggae did their job with extreme competence. It was evident how much they dedicated themselves to rehearsals and the famous "last-minute runs". We were very happy that bands of this caliber are emerging on the tough, competitive, but honest National Reggae scene. We also thank these two bands for humbly joining forces to give a boost to the next band, Liberte-se, which was scheduled to play at the same time as Natiruts, who would perform on the outdoor stage. What you'd expect was that the crowd would go see the established band and leave the covered stage practically empty. But that didn't happen, and we got to witness one of the best shows of the night.

LIBERTE-SE

With a look similar to Leões de Israel (photo) — according to them, a major influence — and plenty of heavy tracks in their bag, Liberte-se started their show at full strength. Bob Marley was present in the set, but this time more like a B-side affair. "Rastaman Chant" and "Soul Rebel" did the honors. But what really caught attention was this band's attitude on their original songs. "Orubaiê" is one of them. With a drum groove characteristic of Roots Rock Reggae, people felt that Liberte-se was already joining that "loud crew": Reggae Style, Leões de Israel, Ponto de Equilíbrio, Mystical Roots, among others. Even on the song "Na Direção Sul", which talks about the beaches of the south, the approach was handled carefully. Another song that caught our attention was "Hipócritas". The opening of this track is pure fire, and Thiago's keyboards made any reggae fan think of the great Augustus Pablo. The show really surprised with this revival. They closed with the song "Liberte-se". The dub they dropped at the end was heavy. People... Brazilian Roots Rock Reggae has new and welcome members. The show ended in time for the start of Natiruts, which made the independent night of Surforeggae in Concert a true success.

NATIRUTS

Now it's time for the phenomena of national reggae to take the outdoor stage — Natiruts. They brought the beautiful Luciana from Mystical Roots to replace Izabella, who is pregnant, and gave us a great and moving surprise: Izabella herself (photo). Showing off her new maternal side (photo), the backing vocalist made her last appearance at this very show. According to Luciana (photo) and Izabella herself, she wasn't even supposed to perform, but love for reggae and for her audience made this effort the most pleasant thing in the world. We spoke with Luciana about Izabella's leave, and she told us that starting next month, she will fully take over backing vocals for Natiruts during this period of dedication by the original vocalist. Alexandre and his "troupe" put on a magnificent show (photo). The outdoor stage was completely packed. Returning to their status as an independent band, Natiruts seemed freer in their performance. "Eu e Ela", "Presente de um Beija-Flor", and other songs were sung with great emotion by the audience present, which valued the show even more (video). Total success with the audience and their reception — Natiruts bid farewell after another beautiful performance. Now the forró crowd had their turn, as Circuladô de Fulô got ready to make the crowd wear out the floor of the covered Banespa stage.

CIRCULADÔ DE FULÔ

With Edu Ribeiro leaving Circuladô's vocals, the new vocalist takes on this post — so debated in the forró scene — with a lot of "responsa" (photo). The show was a smash. The groove remains strong and some say it's even better. Some still prefer Edu Ribeiro, but even so they approved the new option (photo). Circuladô stays firm and strong to keep the forró flame alive for fans who almost felt orphaned after what happened. After this show, Dagô & Radical Roots were going to perform, but as described at the very beginning of the text, that wasn't possible. We hope to count on more responsibility from the contractors, so that professionals like Dagô himself and Central Reggae, the Surforeggae team, and above all the audience, are never harmed again. Beyond that, it's time to celebrate this important step for our team and look forward to the next event — and of course, sleep a lot, because it's 9 a.m. and nobody's made of iron. We're counting on you on our journey. Irie!

EVENT IMAGES

For this event, the Surforeggae team put together two photo albums in various situations. See if you're in one of them!  - Album 1.  - Album 2.