Os Mutantes

Formed in São Paulo in 1966, Os Mutantes are one of the most influential rock groups to ever emerge from Brazil. As part of the Tropicália movement, they mixed psychedelic rock with more traditional Brazilian influences and influenced many musicians that came in their wake. The trio was founded by brothers Sérgio Dias Baptista (guitar, vocals) and Arnaldo Baptista (bass, keyboards, vocals) plus Arnaldo’s wife, vocalist Rita Lee. The group met singer, songwriter, and politician Gilberto Gil, who brought them into the Tropicália movement, which was a dissident musical movement that was at odds with the Brazilian dictatorship. Os Mutantes contributed to the controversial album Tropicália: Ou Panis et Circencis (1968), which was a political manifesto of sorts. The trio released their debut album, Os Mutantes, in 1968 to great acclaim. The album – which featured their version of Françoise Hardy’s “Le Premier bonheur du jour” – was an enormous success and paved the way for albums such as Mutantes (1969) and A Divina Comédia ou Ando Meio Desligado (1970). The trio then recruit bassist Arnolpho Lima ‘Liminha’ Filho and drummer Ronaldo ‘Dinho’ Leme by the time they released Jardim Elétrico (1971) and Mutantes e Seus Cometas No Pais do Baurets (1972). The band had recorded an album – Tecnicholor - in November 1970) but it remained unreleased until 2000. Lineup changes saw the departure of founding members Rita Lee and Arnaldo Baptista and the group continued for one more studio album – Tudo Foi Feito pelo Sol – before officially breaking up after the release of 1976’s Ao Vivo (1976). Continued interest in the band’s recorded legacy inspired the brothers to reunite Os Mutantes in 2006 although Rita Lee declined to join. By the time the group issued the album Haih Or Amortecedor in 2009, Sergio was the only original member left in the lineup. The group also released the albums Fool Metal Jack (2013) and Zzyzx (2020). Os Mutantes’ recorded legacy continued to reach a wider audience thanks to compilations such as 1999’s Everything Is Possible! The Best of Mutant Bones, which had been released on David Byrne’s Luaka Bop label. On May 8, 2023, Rita Lee died of lung cancer at the age of 75.