Gal Costa

Though there are still traces of bossa nova on Gal Costa’s sophomore album, it’s mostly a chance to marvel at how effortlessly (and beautifully) she pairs with tropicália’s strikingly chromatic soundscapes. The fuzzy guitars on “Namorinho de Portão,” the celestial strings on “Baby,” the manic percussion on “Sebastiana”—she powers through them with gusto and drama. A lesser singer may have gotten lost in the haze of American rock \'n\' roll, British psychedelia, and Brazilian rhythms, but Costa thrives.

A lot changed between Gal Costa's pleasantly straightforward 1967 debut Domingo and her eponymous follow-up two years later.