In 2000 the Brazilian pop singer Bebel Gilberto—daughter of the brilliant bossa nova pioneer João Gilberto—achieved a breakthrough with her album Tanta Tempo (Six Degrees), a masterful blend of sensual bossa nova grooves with gentle club flourishes that, like Starbucks, quickly became a model of middle-class sophistication. Though the music remains lovely if a bit toothless, in the years since its release she has struggled to parlay this approach into something fresh.…
In 2000 the Brazilian pop singer Bebel Gilberto—daughter of the brilliant bossa nova pioneer João Gilberto—achieved a breakthrough with her album Tanta Tempo (Six Degrees), a masterful blend of sensual bossa nova grooves with gentle club flourishes that, like Starbucks, quickly became a model of middle-class sophistication. Though the music remains lovely if a bit toothless, in the years since its release she has struggled to parlay this approach into something fresh.…