Flávio Basso (26 January 1968 – 21 December 2015), better known by his stage name Júpiter Maçã and by its English-language variation Jupiter Apple, was a Brazilian singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and filmmaker. Before beginning a solo career in 1994, he was already known for being a founding member of bands

TNT Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reagen ...

and

Os Cascavelletes Os Cascavelletes were a Brazilian Rock music, rock group from Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul. One of the first rock bands from Rio Grande do Sul to acquire mainstream success nationwide alongside its "sister project" TNT (Brazilian band), TNT, th ...

, both pioneers of the

Rio Grande do Sul Rio Grande do Sul (, , ; "Great River of the South") is a Federative units of Brazil, state in the South Region, Brazil, southern region of Brazil. It is the Federative_units_of_Brazil#List, fifth-most-populous state and the List of Brazilian st ...

rock scene in the mid-to-late 1980s/early 1990s.

Biography

Early years, TNT and Os Cascavelletes

Flávio Basso was born in

Porto Alegre Porto Alegre (, , Brazilian ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul. Its population of 1,488,252 inhabitants (2020) makes it the List of largest cities in Brazil, twelfth most populous city in the country ...

on 26 January 1968; his father was a

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate caus ...

and his mother a teacher of German descent. He learned by himself to play the classical guitar when he was 13 years old, and cites

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

Syd Barrett Roger Keith "Syd" Barrett (6 January 1946 – 7 July 2006) was an English singer, songwriter, and musician who co-founded the rock band Pink Floyd in 1965. Barrett was their original frontman and primary songwriter, becoming known for his ...

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...

and

Brian Jones Lewis Brian Hopkin Jones (28 February 1942 – 3 July 1969) was an English multi-instrumentalist and singer best known as the founder, rhythm/lead guitarist, and original leader of the Rolling Stones. Initially a guitarist, he went on to prov ...

as some of his influences. In 1984 he formed the

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...

band

alongside his childhood friends Márcio Petracco, Felipe Jotz and Charles Master, being later joined by

Nei Van Soria Nei Van Soria (born October 5, 1969) is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, lyricist, pianist, guitarist and record producer, famous for his work with pioneering Rio Grande do Sul rock bands TNT and Os Cascavelletes. Biography Van Soria was born in ...

. TNT reached nationwide notoriety after their songs "Entra Nessa" and "Estou na Mão" were included in the 1985 compilation ''Rock Grande do Sul'', made to promote rock bands from Rio Grande do Sul (such as

Engenheiros do Hawaii Engenheiros do Hawaii ("Engineers from Hawaii" in English) was a Brazilian rock band formed in Porto Alegre in 1983 that achieved great popularity with their ironic, critically charged songs with heavily semantic lyrics often relying on wordplays ...

, Os Replicantes, DeFalla and Garotos da Rua) and released by

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

. In 1986, one year before TNT released their first studio album, Van Soria and Basso left the band due to creative divergences with RCA to form their own project,

, which, despite its relatively short lifespan, managed to release one EP, one studio album and a demo. They self-described their irreverent style, characterized by comical and heavily sexually explicit lyrics, as " porno rock". The band's most famous composition was the 1989 hit "Nêga Bombom", featured in the soundtrack of the ''

telenovela A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar drama genres around the world include '' teleserye'' ...

'' ''

Top Model ''Top Model,'' also called ''Next Top Model,'' is a fashion-themed reality television show format produced in many countries throughout the world and seen in over 120 countries producing over 200 seasons, which are referred to as "cycles". T ...

''. Os Cascavelletes broke up in 1992. In 1993 Basso re-joined TNT to record the single "Você Me Deixa Insano/Tá na Lona", but definitely left them again the following year after a falling-out with Charles Master.

Solo career

After his second departure from TNT, Basso began to perform solo, under the moniker "Woody Apple" (as an homage to musician

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer-songwriter, one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American socialism and anti-fascism. He has inspired ...

and record label

Apple Records Apple Records is a record label founded by the Beatles in 1968 as a division of Apple Corps Ltd. It was initially intended as a creative outlet for the Beatles, both as a group and individually, plus a selection of other artists including Mar ...

, founded by

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

). It wasn't until 1995 when he adopted the stage name he became famous for, Júpiter Maçã (with "Júpiter" being an allusion to the fictional spaceship ''

Jupiter 2 ''Lost in Space'' is an American science fiction television series, created and produced by Irwin Allen, which originally aired between 1965 and 1968 on CBS. The series was inspired by the 1812 novel ''The Swiss Family Robinson.'' The series fo ...

'', from one of his favorite TV series growing up, ''

Lost in Space ''Lost in Space'' is an American science fiction television series, created and produced by Irwin Allen, which originally aired between 1965 and 1968 on CBS. The series was inspired by the 1812 novel ''The Swiss Family Robinson.'' The series fo ...

''), and formed the very short-lived project Os Pereiras Azuiz alongside Ubirajara Guimarães, Rogério Campos and Luiz Wilfrido; they only released a demo tape, ''Orgasmo Legal'', before disbanding. In 1997 he signed with independent label Antídoto to release his first solo full-length album, ''

A Sétima Efervescência ''A Sétima Efervescência'' (Portuguese for "''The Seventh Effervescence''") is the debut solo album by the Brazilian musician and former TNT and Os Cascavelletes member Flávio Basso, also known as Júpiter Maçã or Jupiter Apple. It was relea ...

'', which counted with guest appearances by his former

bandmates

Frank Jorge Jorge Otávio Pinto Pouey de Oliveira (born September 20, 1966), better known by his stage name Frank Jorge, is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, lyricist, multi-instrumentalist, poet, Crônica, chronicler and professor, famous for his work with pion ...

and Alexandre Barea, and by

Graforreia Xilarmônica Graforreia Xilarmônica is a Brazilian Prêmio Açorianos-winning rock group from Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul. Famous for their humorous, unpretentious lyrics and for their sonority influenced by 1960s-era bands, the '' Jovem Guarda'' movem ...

guitarist

Marcelo Birck Marcelo de Campos Velho Birck (born August 13, 1965) is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, lyricist, arranger and guitarist, best known for his work with influential rock band Graforreia Xilarmônica. Biography Birck was born in Porto Alegre, Rio Gra ...

; with a heavily psychedelic and experimental sonority comparable to

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...

's 1967 debut ''

The Piper at the Gates of Dawn ''The Piper at the Gates of Dawn'' is the debut studio album by English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 5 August 1967 by EMI Columbia. It is the only Pink Floyd album made under the leadership of founding member Syd Barrett (lead vocals, gu ...

'', the album was critically acclaimed at the time of its release and in 2007 was ranked 96th at ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

Brasil''s list of 100 Greatest Brazilian Music Records. Its follow-up from 1999, ''

Plastic Soda ''Plastic Soda'' is the second studio album by the Brazilian musician Jupiter Apple, released on September 1, 1999 by independent label Trama. Unlike its predecessor, it is fully sung in English and mixes more elements of jazz and traditional Braz ...

'', came out through Trama, and unlike its predecessor, it was fully sung in English; to reflect this, Basso signed the album as Jupiter Apple. It was characterized by an increase in the experimental elements already present in ''A Sétima Efervescência'', mixing

psychedelic rock Psychedelic rock is a rock music Music genre, genre that is inspired, influenced, or representative of psychedelia, psychedelic culture, which is centered on perception-altering hallucinogenic drugs. The music incorporated new electronic sound ...

with ''

bossa nova Bossa nova () is a style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovativ ...

'' and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

. Even though it also had a good reception, critics considered it a very hard album to listen to. After the album's release Basso temporarily moved to England, returning to Brazil in 2002. ''

Hisscivilization ''Hisscivilization'' is the third studio album by the Brazilian musician Jupiter Apple. It was released in 2002 by Voiceprint Records, and is the musician's most experimental, ambitious and elaborate output. Heavily influenced by the sonority of ...

'', his third album, was released soon afterwards by

Voiceprint Records Voiceprint Records was a British independent record label based in England, founded in November 1990 by Rob Ayling. They specialised in re-releasing old material, especially progressive rock, but also had new releases, under the Resurgence and Bl ...

, and was his most ambitious and elaborate work; it is composed of 13 mostly instrumental tracks, the longest of which opens the album and is over 11 minutes long. Basso experimented more with

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electroac ...

elements in this album, what polarized critics and fans alike. In 2003 he moved to Europe once again – this time to Spain – alongside his then-

domestic partner A domestic partnership is a legal relationship, usually between couples, who live together and share a common domestic life, but are not married (to each other or to anyone else). People in domestic partnerships receive benefits that guarantee r ...

Bibiana "Bibmo" Morena to work on further material; after a 4-year hiatus, both returned to Brazil and he released alongside her the collaborative album ''

Bitter Bitter may refer to: Common uses * Resentment, negative emotion or attitude, similar to being jaded, cynical or otherwise negatively affected by experience * Bitter (taste), one of the five basic tastes Books * '' Bitter (novel)'', a 2022 nove ...

'' through Monstro Discos. Through

Elefant Records Elefant Records is an independent record label based in Madrid, Spain. History Elefant Records was founded in 1989 by Luis Calvo as an offshoot of a fanzine he produced called "La Línea del Arco". In 2014, the label's 25th anniversary was celeb ...

and in the same year he released his fourth (and ultimately last) album, ''

Uma Tarde na Fruteira ''Uma Tarde na Fruteira'' (Portuguese for "''An Evening at the Fruit Shop''") is the fourth studio album by the Brazilian musician Jupiter Apple; released in 2007 by Spanish label Elefant Records, it was the musician's final studio album to come o ...

''. It was re-issued in Brazil by Monstro Discos in 2008. In 2009 he released the non-album single "Modern Kid". In 2006, six of Basso's songs – "Um Lugar do Caralho", "Querida Superhist x Mr. Frog", "Canção para Dormir", "The Freaking Alice (Hippie Under Groove)", "As Mesmas Coisas" and "A Marchinha Psicótica de Dr. Soup" – were included in the soundtrack of the animated film '' Wood & Stock: Sexo, Orégano e Rock'n'Roll'', directed by

Otto Guerra Otto Guerra Neto (born March 5, 1956, in Porto Alegre) is a Brazilian filmmaker and animator. Biography Guerra studied philosophy, law and communication, without graduating on any of these courses.. He made comics inspired by the Franco-Belgian ...

. On 23 November 2011, Basso performed live at the Bar Opinião in Porto Alegre, accompanied by his newly founded supporting band, J.A.C.K. (an

acronym An acronym is a word or name formed from the initial components of a longer name or phrase. Acronyms are usually formed from the initial letters of words, as in ''NATO'' (''North Atlantic Treaty Organization''), but sometimes use syllables, as ...

for "Jupiter Apple Corporation and Kingdom"), at the time composed of Julio Sasquatt (drums), Julio Cascaes (electric guitar), Felipe Faraco (bass guitar) and Astronauta Pinguim (keyboards). A DVD of the performance, entitled '' Six Colours Frenesi'', was released in 2014. On 20 July 2012, he accidentally fell off the second floor of the building where he lived, and fractured one of his wrists and a

vertebra The spinal column, a defining synapomorphy shared by nearly all vertebrates,Hagfish are believed to have secondarily lost their spinal column is a moderately flexible series of vertebrae (singular vertebra), each constituting a characteristic ...

. He was then admitted at the Hospital de Pronto Socorro de Porto Alegre, and eventually recovered after a successful surgery. His final releases were the digital singles "Constantine's Empires" and "They're All Beatniks", which came out through Marquise 51 Records in 2015. The first one is available for listening at the record label's official

SoundCloud SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...

page. Alongside Tatá Aeroplano he wrote and directed in 2001 the short film ''Apartment Jazz'', which was broadcast for the first time by

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

in 2010. In 2011 he appeared in "Kreuko", a segment of the

anthology film An anthology film (also known as an omnibus film, package film, or portmanteau film) is a single film consisting of several shorter films, each complete in itself and distinguished from the other, though frequently tied together by a single theme ...

''Mundo Invisível'', alongside

José Wilker José Wilker Almeida (20 August 1944 – 5 April 2014) was a Brazilian film, stage, and television actor and director. The actor gained fame in telenovelas like '' Roque Santeiro'' (1985), but became known internationally for his role as Vadinho, ...

and

Sônia Braga Sônia Maria Campos Braga (; born 8 June 1950) is a Brazilian actress. She is known in the English-speaking world for her Golden Globe Award–nominated performances in '' Kiss of the Spider Woman'' (1985) and ''Moon over Parador'' (1988). She ...

. In 2015 he began work on a second short, ''Jane's Nightmare''; a trailer was uploaded to YouTube on 15 July, but the film was left unfinished following Basso's death. He also hosted the short-lived talk show ''Júpiter Maçã Show'' on MTV. Basso played his final show on 5 December 2015 at the Panamá Studio Pub, in Porto Alegre.

Death and legacy

Known for his extravagant lifestyle, Basso struggled with alcoholism and

drug abuse Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, is the use of a drug in amounts or by methods which are harmful to the individual or others. It is a form of substance-related disorder. Differing definitions of drug abuse are used in public health, ...

(he claimed he took

Diazepam Diazepam, first marketed as Valium, is a medicine of the benzodiazepine family that acts as an anxiolytic. It is commonly used to treat a range of conditions, including anxiety, seizures, alcohol withdrawal syndrome, muscle spasms, insomnia, a ...

and used

LSD Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), also known colloquially as acid, is a potent psychedelic drug. Effects typically include intensified thoughts, emotions, and sensory perception. At sufficiently high dosages LSD manifests primarily mental, vi ...

and

cocaine Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechuan languages, Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly recreational drug use, used recreationally for its euphoria, euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from t ...

on a regular basis) throughout most of his life, and was undergoing a treatment for

cirrhosis Cirrhosis, also known as liver cirrhosis or hepatic cirrhosis, and end-stage liver disease, is the impaired liver function caused by the formation of scar tissue known as fibrosis due to damage caused by liver disease. Damage causes tissue repai ...

on his later years. On 21 December 2015, he was found dead on the bathroom floor in his apartment; his cause of death was later revealed as being

multiple organ failure Multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) is altered organ function in an acutely ill patient requiring medical intervention to achieve homeostasis. Although Irwin and Rippe cautioned in 2005 that the use of "multiple organ failure" or "multisy ...

. His

wake Wake or The Wake may refer to: Culture *Wake (ceremony), a ritual which takes place during some funeral ceremonies *Wakes week, an English holiday tradition * Parish Wake, another name of the Welsh ', the fairs held on the local parish's patron s ...

was held at the Teatro Renascença in Porto Alegre, and he was buried the following day at the Cemitério Ecumênico João XXIII. Commenting on his death, Basso's former

bandmate

said that he was a "tireless creator, a guy who broke away from all commonplaces and predictability". Musician and poet

Rogério Skylab Rogério Tolomei Teixeira (born September 2, 1956), better known by his stage name Rogério Skylab, is a Brazilian singer-songwriter, lyricist, classical guitarist, poet, essayist, record producer, actor and former television presenter. His uni ...

has once stated that Basso was one of his major influences, and besides interviewing him for his talk show ''Matador de Passarinho'' he has also covered his songs "Na Casa de Mamãe" (for '' Skygirls''), "Eu e Minha Ex" (for '' Trilogia dos Carnavais: 25 Anos de Carreira ou de Lápide'') and "A Marchinha Psicótica de Dr. Soup" (for ''

Crítica da Faculdade do Cu ''Crítica da Faculdade do Cu'' (Portuguese for "''Critique of the Power of the Ass''") is the fifteenth studio album by the Brazilian musician Rogério Skylab, the final installment of the "''Trilogia do Cu''" ("''Trilogy of the Ass''"). Totaling ...

''). Former Os Replicantes vocalist Wander Wildner covered "Um Lugar do Caralho" for his 1996 solo debut ''Baladas Sangrentas''. Rock band

Ira! Ira! (Portuguese for ''Anger!'' or ''Rage!'', although the name was inspired by the Irish Republican Army) is a Brazilian rock band that was founded in São Paulo in the early 1980s. They were strongly influenced by the Mod sound of The Who, ...

covered "Miss Lexotan 6mg Garota" for their 1998 album ''Você Não Sabe Quem Eu Sou''. Basso's semi-fictional autobiography, ''A Odisseia: Memórias e Devaneios de Jupiter Apple'', co-written by Juli Manzi, was published posthumously by Azougue Editorial in 2016. Work on the book began in 2014; it was reissued in 2022 in a limited deluxe edition by Psico BR. Another biography of the musician, ''Júpiter Maçã: A Efervescente Vida e Obra'', written by journalists Cristiano Bastos and Pedro Brandt, was published on 5 September 2018 by Plus Editora. On 4 July 2016,

released a song in tribute to Basso, entitled "Balada para Flávio". He originally wrote the song in November 2015, one month before Basso's death. As of September 2017, a documentary about Basso, entitled ''O Garoto de Júpiter'', is being made. Directed by Biah Werther and produced by Gabriel Flag, its production was being

crowdfunded Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and alternative finance. In 2015, over was raised worldwide by crow ...

through website Catarse. On 29 January 2018, friends of the musician performed a special show in his honor at the Bar Ocidente in Porto Alegre, to celebrate what would have been his 50th birthday on 26 January. In April 2018 a vinyl deluxe edition of Basso's debut album ''

'' came out through Monstro Discos. Monstro Discos announced in November 2018 that a double-vinyl reissue of ''

'' was underway; it was released in January 2019. On 11 March 2021, the posthumous album ''Apartment Jazz'' was released, originally intended to serve as the soundtrack of his eponymous film. Later in June, a long out-of-print

extended play An extended play record, usually referred to as an EP, is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record.

recorded in 2007 and entitled ''Ano XXI – № 4 – Incredible News!!!'', was re-issued through streaming platforms. A second posthumous album containing nine tracks, ''The Man Was Jupiter Apple'', was released in May 2022.

Discography

With TNT

With Os Cascavelletes

: ''For a more comprehensive list, see Os Cascavelletes#Discography''

With Os Pereiras Azuiz

Solo

Studio albums

Collaborative album

Video album

Singles

Filmography

* ''Apartment Jazz'' (2001; released in 2010) * ''Mundo Invisível'' (2011; acted only) * ''Jane's Nightmare'' (2015; unfinished)

Bibliography

* ''A Odisseia: Memórias e Devaneios de Jupiter Apple'' (Azougue Editorial, 2016; co-written by Juli Manzi)

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 1968 births 2015 deaths Brazilian rock singers Brazilian rock musicians Brazilian rockabilly musicians Musicians from Rio Grande do Sul People from Porto Alegre 20th-century Brazilian male singers 20th-century Brazilian singers Psychedelic rock musicians Progressive rock musicians Brazilian classical guitarists Brazilian male guitarists Brazilian percussionists Brazilian keyboardists Brazilian record producers Brazilian autobiographers Brazilian bass guitarists Brazilian screenwriters Brazilian film directors Brazilian male film actors Brazilian television presenters Brazilian experimental musicians 21st-century Brazilian male singers 21st-century Brazilian singers Brazilian people of German descent 21st-century Brazilian male actors Deaths from multiple organ failure Male bass guitarists Brazilian male singer-songwriters Brazilian people of Italian descent