PAN M 360 / TOP 100 : Lucas Santanna – O Paraiso

Over the past few weeks, our most active record reviewers have had the task of choosing their 5 favorite recordings of 2023, and here they are. This selection is unique and quite different of all you can find on the web or through traditional medias.

Brazilian Lucas Santanna continues his distinctive musical path with his ninth album, O Paraiso. This album is, in my opinion, his best. “We want paradise on earth,” proclaims the musician, an ecologist at heart, who warns businessman Elon Musk that the future lies on our planet, and not in space. All this is bathed in tropical, soothing, sophisticated folk, to be listened to under a starry sky or in front of a fireplace. Or in a bath. As I write this, Lucas Santanna has received good news from Brazilian President Lula Da Silva: destruction of the Amazon rainforest has been reduced substantially over the past year, the left-wing politician told COP 28 to Dubai. Rare good news in these strange times. O Paraiso is Lucas Santanna’s first opus recorded in France, with a group of excellent French musicians. There is even a piece sung in French, Biosphere, which asks greedy businessmen, “who are the savages, who are the civilized? (Michel Labrecque)

To see the complete list, click here!