Purveyors of: Brazilian samba, bossa nova, and Tropicália, combined with psychedelic electric guitar and funk-inspired bass lines.
File Next To: Tropicália greats Gilberto Gil, Os Mutantes, Caetano Veloso, and the movement’s students Kurt Cobain, Paul Simon, Beck, Stereolab, David Byrne.

Born out of a fascination with Brazil's Tropicália movement of the late ‘60s, Os Tropies began by covering classic Tropicália tunes and branched out from there. Tropicália music itself was diverse and experimental, influenced just as much by traditional bossa nova as the Beatles and Jimi Hendrix. Like the diversity of the original movement, Os Tropies' sound is a self-described combination of everything they like: rock, psych, funk, folk, samba, bossa nova. The list could go on for awhile according to Amy Medvick, the group's vocalist and flute player, so she decided to end it there.

My burning question is, how did you and your bandmates find each other? You all seem like music soulmates!

Most of us went to school together for music at Humber or University of Toronto. As the idea was very slowly coming together to form a Tropicália tribute band, over the years I noticed other people from the music scene in Toronto who were also into this music. Eventually, I had a pretty fantastic imaginary band put together in my head, and I decided to make it a reality!

What, if anything, do listeners need to know about Tropicália to further appreciate your modern take?

One of the major aspects of Tropicália, both musically and politically, was the way in which it sought to challenge Brazilian identity. The Tropicalists insisted that Brazilian music (and by extension, Brazilian identity in general) could encompass everything from traditional rural and folk forms, to urban genres such as carioca samba and bossa nova, to international and modern influences from Euro-American classical, jazz, and rock’n’roll styles. This is why Tropicália music sounds so diverse, and what gave it such power — it may be a bit hard to imagine these days, but in 1960s Brazil, this was quite radical.

Would you say you're continuing to develop the movement, paying homage to it or...?

We began doing covers to recreate what it might have been like to have actually experienced the Tropicália movement. But the more I learned about it, its aesthetics, ideology, and what the Tropicalists had to say about Brazilian (musical) identity, the more I feel I want to bring similar statements to the Torontonian music scene. Particularly in terms of answering the question: what is the Torontonian music scene, what defines it? The Tropicalists might have said something like: everything, and nothing. And I completely agree!

What flavours do you bring to the music that are uniquely yours?

I don’t know if we bring many new flavours, since Tropicália is already so diverse. But we each like to emphasis certain aspects of the sound. I really like to choose and write tunes that lean towards the heavier rock side of the genre, and especially experimental and psychedelic sounding tunes. Carlie, our bassist, always brings out the funkiness of the bass lines. Eric and Fraser, our percussionist and drummer, really enjoy delving into the many traditional rhythms that were incorporated into the genre, etc. And somehow, it all comes together.

Your band pictures are very theatrical. What inspires that? Do you each have personas of some sort?

There was a very theatrical element to Tropicalist performances, especially groups such as Os Mutantes. Much of our visual aesthetic is inspired by photographs from the era. Our photo shoot contains several nods to the cover of the classic 1968 album,Tropicália: ou Panis et Circences, but with references to the rather occult imagery of our newer repertoire, which is in turn inspired by things such as photos of Os Mutantes dressed as witches. Some of the costumes were also inspired by certain Tropicália and post-Tropicália artists — such as Ney Matogrosso’s tribal gear or Rita Lee’s wedding dress.

Amy, I read you've learned Portuguese. What led you to take on such a big task?

I started learning the language as I became interested in Brazilian music. I first learned how to pronounce the words so I could sing the songs, then I became curious and learned how to translate them, and finally tried my hand at writing Portuguese lyrics. Pretty quickly, I became hooked on learning the language. Eventually I visited Brazil and actually got to speak it!

Do you conceive of your lyrics in English then translate or...?

I rarely translate — it usually doesn’t turn out well. Whether I write in Portuguese or English (or some other language, which happens sometimes), I usually start from some concept that is partially defined by language. Some unique turn of phrase that can’t be translated will capture my imagination and I will expand upon it. Other times, I have an idea of the mood or message I want to convey and I decide what language will suit it best before I start writing.

Have you been drawn to any other Brazilian art forms that have influenced your work as musicians?

Everyone in the band has taken an interest in other Brazilian musical forms and actively participated in performing them. Few of us started with Tropicália, in fact. Between the six of us, we encompass a lot of Brazilian genres: samba, bossa nova, choro, forró, maracatu, just to name a few. It has been such a huge part of our development as a band to learn to play these other styles, since you never know when a Tropicália song may draw from one of them in some way.

I read that you have been embraced by the Brazilian community in Toronto. Have you visited Brazil? Performed there?

We have been very warmly welcomed into the Brazilian music scene in Toronto and it has been great for us. Some of us have also spent time in Brazil — I have been twice. I didn’t make any public performances — I was far more interested in watching performances myself! I did, however, end up in a few jam sessions, which were fantastic experiences for me.

Os Tropies plays the Open Roof Festival along with a screening of The Grand Budapest Hotel tonight, June 25, 2014, at 99 Sudbury Street. UPDATE: this event was cancelled due to the rainstorm of June 25. Please stay tuned for a rescheduled date!

Interview by Shannon Roszell