CCMusic.com

Fast-rising Lisbon-based DJ/producer Pedro has shared details of his long-awaited debut album, Da Linha, which will be released via Enchufada. First teased with the release of bubbling lead single "Calores" in January of 2019, Da Linha crowns a defining breakthrough three years for Pedro that has seen him establish himself as one of Portugal's most vibrant and exciting new-school producers. His debut EP, Damaia (2017) - named after the suburb of Lisbon he was born in - immediately signposted a bright, borderless club sound rooted in experimentation, which has since been best emphasized by 2019 releases including the Buraka Som Sistema-sampling "Rapazes" and a breathless collaboration with Nigerian MC, Magugu ("Too Much"), both of which feature on the LP track list. First inspired by his older brother, who would introduce Pedro to the latest electronic music coming out of Portugal, he still references DJ Rolando's "Knights Of Jaguar" as a memorable early touch point - a record he still credits with influencing the melodies he writes to this day. Living and growing up in Damaia, Pedro also went to school with friends of Angolan, Cape Verdean, Brazilian, and Mozambican descent, exposing him to a whole patchwork of new sounds and genres like kuduro and kizomba from a very young age. With such a rich and diverse musical upbringing, it is perhaps no wonder that Da Linha is bursting with energy and color across all ten tracks, melding together the hyper-specific sounds, instruments, and voices that have sound-tracked Pedro's life so far. From the marching, militant rhythm of "Stuck On You" featuring standout Ghanaian MC, Bryte, to the silky, bubblegum vocals and gloopy, earworm melodies of closing track "Para Ti" featuring Xcelencia, you'd be hard pushed to find a debut record that captures a city so viscerally. Also features Kelman Duran, Pedro Mafama, Branko, and DKVPZ.