Club More, the downtown Clearwater nightclub with an admirably eclectic booking policy, turned into an outpost of Carnaval on Friday night, when nearly 500 world-music fans listened, danced and sang along in appreciation of the gathered performers. Portuguese was the melodious language du jour, and English was rarely spoken from the stage.

The occasion for the earthy sounds and revelry was Festa Brasil, a concert, sponsored by WMNF 88.5 FM, featuring two of the brightest rising stars on the Brazilian scene. Chico Cesar, a hit at last May's New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, and Rita Ribeiro, are based in the southern metropolis and musical mecca of Sao Paulo. Each is touring the U.S. in support of a June 27 release on Putumayo World Music, as well as the "Festa Brasil" compilation on the same label. Cesar, a diminutive, boyish presence with his frizzy hair pulled up into a stalk, demonstrated ferocious talent as a charismatic front man, versatile guitarist, sophisticated composer, and smart employer of supporting players.

Backed by a coed band with seven accomplished musicians and singers, he plunged into a set that sounded like an updated version of music championed by Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Gal Costa and other figures of tropicalismo, the Brazilian popular music movement that erupted in the late '60s

Thundering drums and percussion, slashing and surging acoustic and electric guitars, deep-throb electric bass, saxophone, flute, piccolo, accordion and an electric cello combined for the creation of deeply textured arrangements that provided a launching pad for Cesar's commanding vocals. Funk, rock, reggae, jazz and traditional Brazilian and African rhythms were employed during a show that included Brazilian hit "Mama Africa" and "Mand'ela," both heard on Cesar's recent self-titled disc. He sang accompanied only by the cellist at one point, and later led the band through a fast-moving instrumental that might have been the art-rock of Yes crossed with the fusion of Return to Forever.

Badi Assad, an acclaimed singer (and guitarist) from Rio, got on stage with old friend Cesar for an unbilled duet that was one of the evening's emotional high points. The headliner, shortly later, played an impromptu version of the standard "Autumn Leaves" on his unusually shaped nylon-string guitar, and closed, well past midnight, with an invigorating reprise of "Mama Africa."

Ribeiro opened the concert, about 90 minutes after the scheduled start time, with a performance that was similarly engaging. The singer, backed by an aggressive three-piece band, drew from some of the same influences as Cesar, leavening the mix with bits of psychedelic wah-wah guitar, some call-and-response with the crowd and a piece right out of modern rock, circa early '90s.

"I don't speak English," Ribeiro said, in apparently frustrated response to a listener's shouted comments. Neither she nor Cesar needed to worry: We didn't need a translator to understand their appealing musical message.

This review originally appeared in the St. Petersburg Times