Trio Mocoto

• Genre: Brazilian Pop

About

These veteran musicians are the Brazilian equivalent of the Funk Brothers -- they backed all kinds of popular artists in Brazil in the late 1960s and early '70s and put out a few well-received solo albums of their own. Their most notable work was with Jorge Ben, with whom they developed their signature samba-rock (or samba-soul) sound. The band dissolved in the late '70s, and would have gone the way of the passenger pigeon had not interest surged in their music in the '90s DJ culture. The band reunited in 2000, playing together for the first time in 24 years; they released an album in 2002. The result is as raucous and dance-worthy as you'd hope, inspiring a whole new generation of mocotos, the mini-skirted female dancers the band is named for.

- Sarah Bardeen