Click for more from Alisson

Gays and lesbians in Brazil have their own slang repertoire called “pajubá”. Well, actually “pajubá” is a real African dialect from olden times, but it got mixed up with Brazilian Portuguese and became the official second language of queers and gender-benders in this sunny land.

The success of gay slang is so big in Brazil that they have been adopted by straight audiences too – it’s not unusual to hear even small children saying expressions like “arrasa!’ or “aloka!”.

Here’s a quick guide to the most commons phrases and words you’ll hear in a club in Sao Paulo or Rio.

Arrasa!

That’s the most useful gay slang ever. Its literal translation is the verb “to raze”, but it used as to send someone positive vibes, like “kick some ass!”, and “go and get it!”, but also as a simple compliment, as in “awesome!”, “cool!”, “fierce!”. You gonna hear it everywhere and in all kinds of situations. Other meanings can also be “work it, girl!”, “right on!”, “sashay, shantay!” and so on.

“Fazer a egícia” – (“to give an Egyptian face”)

1) it’s like when you say hello to a queen on the dancefloor and she pretends to not see you just to keep her pose intact, so you say “Bitch just gave me an Egyptian face”, like the statue of Nefertiti, got it?

2) You’re talking to someone about something he did last night and he pretends he doesn’t have a clue about what you’re saying, even though everyone else does it, so he’s also “giving an Egyptian face”, an indifferent yet guilty look.

Boy Magia

Oh well, this is self-explanatory. A “magic boy” is that kind of man that makes jaws drop. He puts a spell on you and enchants you with his beauty. That’s why he’s magic.

Bate Cabelo – (“Whipping Hair”)

If you’ve watched a drag show in Brazil, you noticed that they almost always follow the same pattern: she comes to the stage in one outfit, lipsynch for a bit, then starts stripping, takes her head-piece off and last – but not least – starts whipping her hair like a crazy tornado. Seriously, they literally fight amongst themselves for the title of the best “hair whipper” of the clubs. It became a Brazilian trademark and this is called “bate cabelo” in proper Portuguese. Since 99% of these shows are performed under heavy tribal-house beats, this type of music also became known as “bate cabelo”.

See it to believe it:

Aloka! (also written as “a loca!” or “aloca!”)

Literally, “the crazy lady”. Used as an interjection with several meanings, mostly to express shock or astonishment about something in a funny way. It can also be used in the sentence “Não faça a aloka comigo!”, meaning “don’t go all ‘crazy lady’ on me!” (don’t pull tricks on me, girl).

Bicha Pão com Ovo – (“Bread and Eggs queer”)

It refers to a gay guy who pretends to be rich and highly cultured but in reality doesn’t have a penny in his pocket and barely knows how to write his name. It comes from an urban legend about an old gay guy who was always pretending to be the next Queen of England but in reality used to carry a sack with a bread and eggs sandwich to eat at the bus station after everyone was gone.

Boa Noite, Cinderela – (“Good Night, Cinderela”)

It’s the criminal act of doping someone to steal their belongings. A common act carried out  by trannies and prostitutes who work on the streets, with tourists as main victims!

Pocket dictionary of unusual terms:

Portuguese / English

1. adoro! – “I love it!” (the amount of “o” letters you put in the word are equivalent to your excitement, as in “adoooooooooro!” (meaning, “looooooooove it!”)
2. alibã – a cop (plural: “alibãs”)
3. aqüé – money
4. abalar – to do something really great, as in “Abala!” (“You rock!”)
5. amapoa – woman/girl (mostly positive slang)
6. atendimento – to have sex with someone, a hook up.
7. armário – gay closet (as in “out of the closet”)
8. bafo – something worth talking about
9. banheirão – to cruise in bathrooms
10. barbie – extremely muscled guy who always takes his shirt off inside the clubs
11. bofe – a masculine, hot guy
12. carão – to give face
13. colocón – dope, drugs, booze
14. colocada – someone on drugs/drunk
15. drama – well, “Drama!”
16. dragão – literally “dragon”. Someone really ugly.
17. elza – to steal. Used as “dar a elza” (meaning “to steal something”) or “me deram a elza” (meaning “someone stole something from me”)
18. E ai? – “Hello!”, a very common greeting
19. equê – a lie or something fake
20. ferver – to party hard
21. larica – hunger, specially after smoking pot and heavy drinking
22. mona – a gay man, mostly effeminate.
23. montada – someone who’s dressed-up
24. neca – dick
25. neca odara – hard dick
26. neca mati – short dick
27. otim – drinks
28. padê – cocaine
29. passivona – a strictly-bottom guy (mostly used in a derogatory way)
30. pegação – sexual acts, going from simple flirtation to hard sex
31. picumã – hair (fake or real)
32. pintosa – someone very flamboyant
33. racha – woman (mostly pejorative)
34. sapa/sapatona – dyke (literally, “woman with big man shoes”)
35. taba – weed, marijuana
36. traveco – tranny (extremely pejorative!!)
37. Tô bege! – expression meaning “I’m shocked!”. Also used as “Tô passada!”

Click for more (youtube)

.

.

Sao Paulo has the biggest Japanese community in the world living outside Japan. The first Japanese immigrants came here more than 100 years ago and, after living and working as farmers in the countryside, they chose the centrally located neighborhood called “Liberdade” (“freedom”, in Portuguese) as a home away from home.

The neighborhood has been for decades a very popular tourist spot, with streets all decorated with Japanese sculptures and gardens, but now it seems that it’s time Liberdade rejuvenates itself and maybe steal the spotlight from some more famous neighborhoods like Baixo Augusta or Barra Funda.

One of the first spots to be adopted by intrepid clubbers was the karaoke bar inside Choperia Liberdade. In the olden days, the place was a traditional pub for the Japanese community to enjoy a fun weekend, but then it got discovered by accident and soon became a place for a more ‘alternative’ crowd to hang out during the week. As it always happens, it was a great place to be before it got too popular.

The square in front of the main subway station attracts a very young crowd every Saturday and Sunday, big anime/manga fans who also dare to dress up in very fashionable outfits – it’s not rare to spot a “gothic lolita” or a “punk rocker in a bear costume” parading amongst them. At the main avenue, will find the most interesting gift shops ever – places where you can shop for all kinds of crazy things, from plastic Buddha statues to real ninja swords. And also, of course, amazing Asian food markets.

Once located at the famous Rua Augusta, the art gallery Mezzanino has now moved to Liberdade and may soon turn its quiet street into a new place for alternative arts. The gallery is specialized in photography and Modern Art, and features both established and new artists on its cast (me included!).

But the main new attraction is Cine Joia. The place was one of the first cinemas in town, and used to show Japanese movies for the local community. After being closed for years, the venue got in the hands of Facundo Guerra – the King Midas of Sao Paulo’s nightlife and owner of several clubs like Vegas and Lions - who got together with DJ Andre Juliani and music journalist Lucio Ribeiro to turn the place into the coolest concert house ever.

The new Cine Joia had its world debut last Thursday with a DJ set by James Murphy (former LCD Soundsystem) and will start its glorious journey with a concert by Ladytron this week.

The arrival of these new places will shake things around and maybe we’ll be seeing new clubs opening there in a few months. Liberdade is the best proof of how culturally diverse (and cool) Sao Paulo is. Or as the people who live there would say; “tanoshii!!”.

Magal, Renato Cohen, Camilo Rocha, Benjamin Ferreira, Alisson Gothz, Eduardo Corelli

D-edge's Main dance floor

“While our generation took ten years to be able to distinguish house from techno, the next generation that is starting to go out at night has a completely pop background. And today’s pop music is just like mainstream electronic music”. Facundo Guerra (Vegas, Volt, Lions).

Speaking to leading Sao Paulo media figure Claudia Assef recently, nightlife entrepreneur Facundo Guerra, 37, sparked a firestorm of debate when he suggested underground club culture- and international DJs – were no longer viable in the city. Rival club promoter Renato Ratier, who months earlier doubled the size of his landmark club D-Edge, disagreed, though Facundo, a partner in seminal underground nightspot Vegas and new pop centred nightspot Lions was firm.

“Today, if you do not play pop on the dance floor people leave,” he insisted.

“At Lions recently I saw a scene that shocked me: Mau Mau, a DJ we all love, started spinning after Roque Castro, who had just played an extremely pop orientated set. Guess what happened? Mau Mau cleared the floor, something I had never seen in my life!”

Mau Mau (one of Brazil’s most popular and critically acclaimed DJs, overseas as well as at home) was understandably furious and denied Facundo’s claim categorically though given that I’ve just arrived in Sao Paulo for what will be my seventh mini-DJ tour, the tale provokes a touch of concern for me. Not least because both my first and last gigs from five take place at Facundo’s newest club: Lions . . .

Bar de Netao revellers (DJ Jeronimo & friend)

Lions:

Saturday nights at Lions are hosted by leading tech/house DJ agency 3 Plus so I’m optimistic I’ll find a typically receptive crowd though when the dance floor thins noticeably soon after I’ve started I’m a little alarmed. Four tracks later just a small group remain but they’re enthusiastic, flamboyant and totally up for it, with the street style and attitude of international clubbers.

Approaching me with his thumbs up, one promises to drag more people into the room and moments later he’s back with a healthy sized bunch of friends in tow, who in turn attract more clubbers from the disco/ pop floor outside.

One hour later, the same guy approaches and says ‘I’m the promoter, I LOVE what you’re playing, do you want to finish in the (larger) bar room?’ so I finish up the night satisfied: but only just.  With four more gigs to go (D-Edge, A Loca, BAR DO NETÃO then Lions again) this trip looks like it’s going to be trickier than previous tours . . .

—=—-

D-Edge (click for more)

D Edge:

“I’m not completely against pop, I genuinely like some pop and I have no problem with playing famous tracks sometimes in my sets. But

It’s one thing surprising your crowd with an unexpected Prince classic and quite another dropping that Lady Gaga track that is heard everywhere else.” Benjamin Ferreira. http://soundcloud.com/benjaminferreira

JT & Benjamin @ Bar De Netao (click for Benjamin's soundcloud)

Disco-house DJ (and Skrufff man) Benjamin Ferreira was selected as one of DJ Magazine’s Breakthrough DJs last year and regularly headlines parties and clubs throughout the city.  He’s also a first choice opener DJ for internationals such as Derrick Carter, Horse Meat Disco’s Luke Howard and Made To Play boss Jesse Rose, opening for him the Friday before me, on the main dance floor of D-Edge.

While Benjamin used his local knowledge to pack out D-Edge’s main space, the nowadays LA based Panorama Bar favourite uncharacteristically struggled, finishing early as the clubbers chopped and changed between the club’s three floors. So tonight I’m taking programming advice from Benjamin, which he sums up with one word- disco.

Like big name Brazilian DJs Renato Cohen and Camilo Rocha, Benjamin spent most of the 90s spinning exclusively techno though like both Renato and Camilo in recent years he’s embraced disco more and more and tonight’s party is an all disco DJ line-up: plus me.

Kicking off with a lower bpm than I’ve EVER played, I mix in house with disco classics from Yazoo (Situation), Lindstrom (I Feel Space) and even Madonna (the dub version of Everybody) gradually splicing in killer tech-house cuts from the likes of Perfect Stranger and (ironically) Made To Play. D-Edge has long rightly been recognised as Brazil’s best underground electronic music venue, due to its sound system, lights and most importantly crowd and tonight it (thankfully) turns out the same.

2 hours in and I’m playing peak time hands-in-the air techno with everybody screaming and dancing and as the club shut the newest floors leaving just mine open I end up spinning for an extra hour again, to a packed house. AMAZING. One of my best ever gigs in Brazil.

—=—-

A loca

A Loca

“I think the problem isn’t exactly with pop music, the DJs also have their share of guilt – it’s totally possible to be creative and innovative playing pop, you have four decades full of great hits to choose from. So you don’t have to play the entire Lady Gaga album in one night.”

This is what makes some of these parties so awful. Sometimes they play “I Gotta Feeling” (Black Eyed Peas) four times in just one night. Of course everybody will dance but are you a DJ or a jukebox?” Alisson Gothz

Alisson Gothz

As a former party hostess at pop club Gloria and one of Sao Paulo’s best known performance artists, Alisson Gothz says many on the gay scene currently want only ‘tribal house or radio hits’.

“There’s nothing wrong with pop music parties but I guess this ‘scene’ has become over-saturated,” says Alisson, “There are tons of parties that look alike – and play the exact same tracks over and over again. It’s as if the entire city was playing “Bad Romance” in every corner”.

One such club is once notorious transvestite institution A Loca (where for many years Alisson worked the door) where I’ve been invited to spin tonight by lovely DJ blogger/ man-about town Eduardo Corelli. Like D-Edge, I’ve played here five times previously though tonight I’ve been warned that it’s music policy has changed.

A Loca back in the day (click for more)

To pop it appears when I arrive, as Lady GaGa and Beyonce are blasted out to a young, markedly different crowd from the freaks, hookers and misfits who once defined the basement institution.

Eduardo spins just before me and thankfully replaces Gaga with classic house from the likes of Frankie Knuckles and Inner City though tonight’s crowd for me is simply too pop orientated to reach and apart from 4 minutes of euphoria (when I give in and drop Beyonce’s Crazy in Love) it’s a grim overall experience.

Speaking afterwards Eduardo remains confident about overall club culture, though admits he loathes the auto-tune robo-voices dominating so many hits.

“These tunes featuring those false voices are killing pop music,” he complains. “Remember when you’d hear Chic or Soul 2 Soul,’ he sighs, “ I hope pop productions change in that direction again in the not too distant future.”

“Why do I think pop has become so popular in the clubs here? Well it’s always been so,” he points out.

“So for example we had Abba disco at the same time as Larry Levan, the Smiths and U2, or you had Frankie Knuckles on the one hand and Erick Morillo on the other. The best pop is actually timeless,”

—=—-

Bar de Netao (Renato Cohen, 2nd from left)

POSH! @ BAR DO NETÃO

“I think it’s pretty obvious to say that in short term, things will get more and more commercial but in the longer term, there will be always a small group growing up looking for quality music, it’s cyclical. In the last fifteen years, I’ve seen that happen about three times and I always end up being pleasantly surprised.” Renato Cohen (Renato on soundcloud; http://soundcloud.com/renato-cohen )

Opening his first club Vegas in a former strip club some eight years ago, Lions owner Facundo not only helped to gentrify Sao Paulo’s seedy sometimes dangerous transvestite prostitute strip on Rua Augusta but created a landmark club for underground house and techno in the city.

Eight years on, though still trading, Vegas is seen as over by most of the clubbing cognoscenti, though Rua Augusta continues to thrive attracting thousands of clubbers nightly to bars and venues dotted in between the sex clubs and strippers that remain on its lower downtown stretches.

50 metres up the street from Vegas is BAR DO NETÃO, a tiny basement sweatbox bar with a dancefloor the size of Berlin’s Club de Visionaire that’s nevertheless one of the coolest nightspots for underground clubbers. And leading its program is POSH! a predominantly gay affair that attracts a wild and stylish crowd of bears and allsorts.

Shell-shocked from A Loca’s toxic pop, I’m grateful POSH! is just around the corner and even happier when I arrive to hear the DJ (Jeronimo) spinning deep, groovy, pulsating techno. And everyone inside is TOTALLY up for it, screaming, sweating and snogging (Brazilians in every club are VERY big on kissing). POSH is celebrating its 2^nd birthday and Benjamin Ferreira and I do a 30 minute tic-tac set dropping proper Berlin style darker than dark techno which goes down a storm.

Saturday’s been saved, and judging from BAR DO NETÃO, at least, underground dance music is thriving.

—=—-

Lions

Lions

“The pop nightlife scene has always existed here, like everywhere else. The only difference now is that the pop clubs are having a greater impact because we have so many clubs here generally. But I don’t believe this will finish our underground scene.” DJ Magal. Magal on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/magalsp )

Magal @ D-edge

As one of Sao Paulo’s most experienced and popular DJs, Magal has seen many trends come and go and he’s impressively insouciant about the impact- or otherwise, of Black Eyed Peas style pop. Though he’s invited me to play an all disco set with him tonight, the techno pioneer points out ‘Sao Paulo has 20 million people, there’s no reason all styles can’t thrive’ and promptly illustrates the point with a well received set of immaculately selected underground disco.

Lions isn’t particularly busy but it’s a Tuesday night and it’s been raining non stop all evening but another factor that’s definitely relevant is cost. Tickets tonight cost 50 REAIS, equivalent to over 20 EURs, a door tax that’s matched at most of the other clubs (except Bar de Netau, which is free).

Camilo Rocha

Camilo Rocha, one of Brazil’s top journalists as well as DJs agrees it’s a problem.

“A lot of clubs in SP now have become too expensive. This is leaving a lot of people out,” he says.

“I reckon the main battle is really not against this or that kind of music but against elitism and overpricing. If you want to gather a solid audience for underground music you have to be open to all walks of life. If you just cater for the upper middle classes upwards you are seriously limiting what you can achieve. Also, it makes for a much poorer and boring vibe in the club,” he points out.

He’s also optimistic about the wider picture for nightlife.

“Although there are many reasons for complaint, with a lot of pop-oriented nights and what seems like a very eager audience for these parties, there are solid underground currents going on,” says Camilo.

“Last weekend, for example, I played at guerilla party Voodoo Hop, after UK DJ Floating Points, and the party was outstanding. There was a perfect vibe, people smiling and going for it until early morning and the most well-known tune I played was probably “Sun”, by Caribou!””

I know, it’s probably the exception that proves the rule but then you also have  events like the Virada Cultural, SP city’s massive street festival, which had people packing and appreciating shows by non-mainstream acts like Skatalites, Fred Wesley & JBs, Deodato, The Misfits, tons of underground DJs.

“It was for free and once the money issue is out of the way you realize how many people can come and get into different kinds of stuff. It definitely lifted my hopes.”

Benjamin Ferreira is equally hopeful.

“Music-wise I feel people are more and more open for different sounds – new and classic, organic and synthetic. São Paulo has embraced me and it feels like home,” the Amazon raised DJ explains.

“You see established clubs such as D-Edge with wonderful line-ups every week, parties such as Ursound and venues such as Bar do Netão and Trackers (a biweekly Sunday afternoon warehouse party in an abandoned downtown tower block) delivering good music for different people.

“The underground is also thriving with the clubs and parties aforementioned and these places, among others, make the São Paulo nightlife the busiest and more exciting in Brazil,” he says.

For me, I’ve ended up having another fantastic trip to Sao Paulo where I’ve enjoyed playing at- and attending parties that have been as good as any from previous years, not least because of Brazilian people’s all round friendliness and love of partying. Sao Paulo rocks!”

Jonty Skrufff