Nation Beat

http://www.nationbeat.com/

Which nation, and which beat? What makes this group special is that it offers no simple answers. They are rhythm gatherers, harvesting the fruit of 500 years of cultural cross-breeding, which is why the sounds of the northeast of Brazil and the southern United States blend together so seamlessly.

At the heart of Nation Beat's Legends of the Preacher lies a totally original 21st century fusion between thunderous Brazilian maracatu drumming and New Orleans second line rhythms, Appalachian-inspired bluegrass music, funk, rock, and country-blues. Conjuring the spirit of powerful and liberated carnival queens, rising Brazilian star Liliana Araujo fronts the ensemble with her soaring powerhouse vocals. A recent finalist on Brazil's "American Idol" spin-off program FAMA , Araujo evokes the righteous soul singers of America's golden age of soul.

Legends of the Preacher also features three mesmerizing collaborations with 2007 GRAMMY award winners The Klezmatics. As if blending the roots music of Brazil and America seamlessly were not accomplishment enough, with The Klezmatics they have added a third layer -- Eastern European roots. Nation Beat founder and bandleader Scott Kettner and Klezmatics co-founder Frank London have spent years exploring possible musical connections between northern Brazil and the Jewish community that planted roots there nearly 400 years ago. The two groups connect sonically and spiritually to provide elegance, whimsy, charm, and soul to these groundbreaking fusions.

Kettner describes maracatu as "a really high-energy, percussive, Afro-Brazilian dance rhythm that gets all up in your bones and makes you shake.” Nation Beat brings the audacious energy of this musical storm to both their recorded work and especially their electric live performances, which have attracted music fans from a wide demographic: bluegrass and country music fans, Brazilian music lovers, outdoor festival-goers, and pretty much anyone who loves to dance.