CeU hides her Brazilian roots

The much heralded young Brazilian singer CeU arrived at the El Rey Theatre on Wednesday night with an impressive dossier. But the promise wasn’t always matched by the performance.

Her self-titled debut album was the first by an international artist to be chosen for Starbucks’ Hear Music Debut CD series. It hit No. 1 on Billboard’s world music chart (which had been dominated for nearly two years by the Celtic Woman ensemble), and she was nominated for a Latin Grammy in 2006 for best new artist.

As with a growing legion of other international singers, CeU reveals in her music a fascination with American R&B;, jazz and soul. She has said, in fact, that “I have a passion for black culture, from jazz divas to Afro beat.”

Her vision of many of those qualities was obvious in her high-powered set at the El Rey. But she chose a musically simplistic perspective, packaging her songs -- most of which were from the CD -- in heavily thumping rhythms provided by a band dominated by a turntablist and a pair of percussionists. The occasional dashes of warmth and tenderness, the suggestions of Brazilian subtlety on the album as well as in several of her YouTube segments were rarely evident live.

That’s not to diminish CeU’s skills or the quality of her material. Her voice is rich and warm, and tunes such as “Malemolencia,” “Rainha” and “Lenda” are filled with attractive melodies and engaging hooks. But by largely abandoning her Brazilian roots in favor of a relatively faceless, international pop-style presentation (interestingly, she sang her first number wearing a blindfold), her performance lacked the potential she established on the CD. Much of her set, had it been sung in English, would have been indistinguishable from offerings by any one of dozens of twentysomething American singers.

All of which is a bit of an enigma, given CeU’s obvious talent. But it’s unlikely that her real promise will be fully revealed until she rediscovers her roots, and allows her unique Brazilian qualities to transform her performances, combining those captivating cultural elements with her ability to write, find and interpret engaging songs.