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Galactic: Carnivale Electricos

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Carnivale Electricos is an ambitious, frenetic expression of a wildly talented band’s tireless sense of musical and cultural wanderlust. Setting out with an eager sense of thematic inspiration and a star-studded bunch of friends who worked for New Orleans’ finest rhythm section on the MC-heavy From the Corner to the Block and 2010’s Ya-Ka-May, this time, the experiment goes global to deliver the group’s most unique and challenging record to date. The guest-heavy, cultural joyride takes the listener through the Carnival musical traditions of New Orleans (“Karate”) and Brazil (“Magalenha”), while stylistically meshing the two traditions throughout. Bombastic Samba grooves resonate beneath the syncopated electro-funk ruckus that Galactic has become synonymous with. Guests like Moyseis Marques, Al “Carnival Time” Johnson, Mannie Fresh and Mystikal offer the sounds of a Carnival party from a multitude of differing perspectives, but the standout guest spot comes when the band grasps the Afro-Orleanian sound that they’ve embraced in their past. “Out in the Street” may just be an instant New Orleans classic, a Slyleaner sing-along featuring Cyril and Ivan Neville marked by an anthemic Fat Tuesday morning proclamation: “Ain’t no time to sleep/ Gotta get out in the street.” Fittingly, a slowburning, gospel stomp-and-clap instrumental lets the collective party exhale on the album-closing “Ash Wednesday Sunrise.”