Few musical traditions bend time with the fluid grace of Afro-Bahian sacred percussion. On ‘Segundo Sentido’,  São Paulo guitarist and Latin Grammy-winning composer Lourenço Rebetez bridges that ancient Candomblé lineage with the wonky, unquantised swing of hip-hop pioneers J Dilla and Madlib.

Arriving ahead of his second full-length album, Língua Geral (due November 4), the piece honors the outlawed colonial contact language, based on ancient Tupi, that once allowed Indigenous nations, enslaved Africans, and European settlers to communicate across Brazil. Produced alongside avant-pop icon Arto Lindsay, the composition treats rhythmic friction as a living, universal dialect.

From the opening second, dry woodblocks, agogô bells, and organic hand percussion spark the arrangement into motion before a deep, sun-drenched bassline slides in around the eight-second mark. The groove feels effortless. Navigating an elastic 11/8 time signature inherited from his late mentor Letieres Leite, Rebetez layers breezy soprano saxophone melodies and bright brass accents over the shifting drum pocket, delivering an infectious analog groove ripe for golden-hour listening.

By transforming complex polyrhythmic math into relaxed tropical soul, Rebetez delivers an essential masterclass in instrumental fusion, one that leaves an unmistakable, lingering warmth.