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The arid lands of Brazil’s underdeveloped Northeast have been a hotbed of musical innovation ever since the early 1990s when manguebeat trailblazers Nação Zumbí and Mundo Livre s/a brought Brazilian music crashing into the 21st Century with their pioneering fusion of rock, hip-hop and maracatú. In their wake they left a vibrant Northeastern music scene that continues to thrive to this day, as anyone who has checked out the recent Pernambuco Live compilation will know.

Cabruêra, originally from the state of Paraíba, are further proof that the musical pulse of modern Brazil is still found in the Northeast — and on this form will remain there for some time yet. One of the most original groups to emerge in recent years, they have established themselves as key figures on the post-manguebeat scene. The band’s anarchic sound draws heavily on the rich and diverse musical heritage of their rural roots, with elements of coco, embolada and forró dropped into a punkified mix alongside modern urban styles such as drum’n’bass, funk and hip hop.

The stylistic diversity of Proibido Cochilar is seriously impressive. Few bands could slip so effortlessly from the industrial rhythms and bad-ass basslines of the ferocious ‘Canção Pra Ninar’ to the tropical loveliness of ‘Batendo O Martelo Nas Mesmas Cabeças’ and the textured, experimental psychedilia of ‘Espinhos’. In such a strong set highlights come thick and fast but the spare reworking of the classic ‘Cacará’ and the dancefloor-slaying version of ‘Magistrado Ladrão’ by drum’n’bass maestro Marcelinho da Lua are my personal favourites.

With the 40th anniversary of the Tropicália movement just around the corner, Proibido Cochilar is a welcome reminder that Brazil continues to throw up wildly innovative and exciting new music. Cabruêra are already masters of many musical styles and it’s surely only a matter of time before they transcend genre altogether to give us a modern classic of Brazilian — scratch that, global — music.