Aaron Frazer in Berlin. João & Jaques in Hamburg.

With his signature falsetto voice and with his new, sophomore LP “Into The Blue” in tow, Aaron Frazer stopped by in Berlin last week during his Euro tour. His brilliant mix of old school soul and disco was presented at Columbia Theater with a perfect sound and a thrilling, 8-piece band, including brass and backing vocals. For most of the time, Aaron was in front of the mic – his work as a drummer with Durand Jones & The Indications came to the fore just briefly when he was sitting behind the drum kit. He easily swayed through the songs from his album, sometimes exceptionally cool, sometimes with an uncanny swagger, with or without the sunglasses. His intonation and phrasing were pitch-perfect and the show had this lively energy from the start. Especially rewarding were pieces like “Thinking Of You” and “Dime”, both excellent vehicles for Aaron’s voice. Something like a party atmosphere surrounded “Payback”. You could tell that the whole band had at least as much fun as the jolly crowd. And I really liked the pretty soulful version of “Play On”. Aaron will play New Zealand and Australia in March.

I went to Hamburg a day later to see João Bosco and Jaques Morelenbaum at Elbphilharmonie. The legendary singer, songwriter, and guitarist, now 78, and the cellist, composer, and arranger, now 70, joined forces for a 2-hour marathon through the Brazilian soundscape and beyond. With cello and guitar sometimes veering towards chamber-like acoustics, and João’s almost otherworldly vocals, the combination of both their talents is really unmatched. João was playing music from his vast discography, from the 70s right up to his most recent album “Boca Cheia De Frutas”, with the huge Brazilian audience members chiming in a couple of times. Both players seemingly enjoyed their collaboration which comes across as a perfect match.