The other night Georgia went out in Puerto Iguazu to find the "Brasilian club" where only Brasilians go. We ended up walking forever to the "Tres Fronteras"- a high spot on the Argentine side which overlooks the river and the coasts on the Brasil and Paraguay sides. We found the club, but they wanted 15 pesos to get in! Highway robbery! So we went and hung around the overlook point with a bunch of other cheap locals. Walking back by the downstairs area of the club, though, I noticed what the DJ was bumping. Hard and dirty baille- total Favela style. We had to suck it up and go in. We bought a big Quilmes and stepped to the strobelight-addled dancefloor. The Dejays rocked the most hardcore Baille for like 5 songs. People were into it, but I felt like I was the most stoked. Looking around, it was mostly light skinned, middle-class looking Brasilians. Some were grinding a bit, but none of the full-on sex acts I´d heard of this music inspiring on the dancefloor. Then the DJ switched to sunny Brasilian pop. Now the dancefloor got swamped and people started cheering. I was crestfallen. As the music degenerated from Brasilian pop to typical Buenos Aires techno, It occured to me that maybe baille was not the music of choice for this crowd. It's more that this style has become popular amongst hipsters around in the past year or so thanks to DJs like Diplo. Now that this crude, base music is becoming recognized by music critics and afficionados everywhere, middle class light skinned people in Brazil must feel obligated to listen to it for the first time, if only as a point of national pride. This music of the Favelas, by and for black Brasilians, is the new hot shit and Brasilians who would have scoffed at it a year ago now feel obligated to dance to it in the club. So we had to eat our 15 pesos and listen to Depeche Mode remixes. OK.
Man, all this makes me want to go to Brasil. We mave have to suck it up once again and pay the 100 US for a visa. Fucking American government for screwing it up for us. Whats new?