Tempo Feliz is proud to announce their album full debut Respirar, which will be released on May 21st on HPBC Records. The album also includes remixes from Sibson (Elevator East), Charles Vaughan (Worldwide FM) and global groove taste-maker Aroop Roy.
Tempo Feliz is a Leeds-based Brazil-inspired ensemble, performing exciting original compositions and electrifying arrangements of Brazilian classics. Having collectively been inspired by the rich and multi-faceted landscape of Brazil, Tempo Feliz fuse funk, soul and disco with Brazilian percussion styles, creating their own original grooves with flavours of samba, batucada and MPB.
The 9-piece ensemble is a Music:Leeds launchpad-supported group and have been writing and performing on stages throughout the UK. The album, spearheaded by Rich Vickers and Henry Weekes, was recorded at Eiger Studios in 2020. They are proud to be launching their debut album on the 20th of May at a sold-out show at the Brudenell Social Club.
Respirar was written during the band’s 5 years gigging across the country and experiencing the ebb and flow of audiences on the dancefloor. Translating as “to breathe”, Respirar encompasses high energy dance grooves as well as moments of calm, centred around the collective breath of the audience. The album includes sections that highlight the fierce horn section, backed up with driving funk-orientated guitar and bateria percussion (Respirar, Nao Enrola Nao, Zambi) as well as melancholic and spacious numbers (Na Brisa, Canção do Luar) showcasing the band’s depth of playing and compositional arrangement. The album ends with Beija Flor, an up-tempo toe-tapper that evokes the emotions and energy felt at the end of our performances.
The remixes emphasise the dance-orientated nature of the songs and Tempo Feliz are so grateful to the artists for reinterpreting our music.
Aroop Roy is a London-based DJ, producer and label head, who blends together the electronic edge of House, Disco and Broken Beat with the soulful sounds of Afro, Latin, Funk and Jazz. Aroop’s productions have been supported by tastemakers from diverse scenes and generations including Gilles Peterson, Hunee, Antal, Optimo, Detroit Swindle, Karizma, Dave Lee, Atjazz, Francois K, Soul Clap.
Tempo Feliz’s ‘Respirar’ is released 21 May, order your copy here.