The Magical Realism of Nessi Gomes

Last week I discovered new Portuguese-English folk artist Nessi Gomes. It feels quite egotistical to call her new only because I didn't know about her until now, when she has probably been working hard for at least a few years to reach the level of maturity and mastery that she possesses.

Her debut album Diamonds & Demons is proof of why she deserved the status of Best UK Unsigned Female that she earned last year and, although pretty soothing itself, it's clearly beaten by the live version. In fact, her live performance allows the audience to enter a different world, unique thanks to Gomes’ cultural richness, which is the soul of her sound. Something like the equivalent of Magical Realism in music.

Gomes performed a very intimate acoustic set on her own. Well, unless you count her guitar as a companion. Her songs seem to form a whole when performed together, and a continuity is clearly present across the setlist. Unusually 7-8 minutes-long tunes built around magical arpeggios communicate a precious contradiction of fragility and unconventional strength. Besides being purely honest, her music also seems to say ‘it’s okay to be so’, which is one the most special things about it.

Allow yourself to go into Nessi’s and your own most vulnerable dimensions by listening to these gems. Your own emotional happiness may depend on it :).