The Pop Corporation

It’s poor form to liken a new artist to a legend straight off the bat, but there’s a wriggling, unescapable something about Ava Rocha that reminds us of Gal Costa. Gal, is of course, one of the most legendary artists to come out of Brazil and the Tropicalia movement, so no pressure Ava.

However, while certain qualities in Rocha’s voice has echoes of Costa’s, it not necessarily the sounds themselves that remind us of Gal, rather, it’s the playfulness and inventiveness in the music. Ava Rocha makes Brazilian music, sure, but it’s also music without boundaries, and that’s what we love about her so much, and it’s exactly what we loved about Gal. It’s artistic, it’s great, it’s on it’s own terms.

We’re huge fans of Ava’s ‘Patrya Yndia Yracema’ album, and ‘Você Não Vai Passar’ felt like an immediate classic on first listen. Throughout the LP, there were experimental electronics, baroque orchestrations twisted out of shape, and inventive hooks and stuttering pop. It’s a masterpiece of modern Brazilian music, and they better be making a legend of her over there, or there’ll be trouble.

It shouldn’t surprise us really, as Ava comes from good stock – her father is Glauber, a Cinema Novo legend which of course was a complimentary visual art associated with the Tropicalistas of the ’60s and ’70s. Her mother, Paula Gaitán, a visual artist. While it has little to do with the work made by Ava Rocha, it should let you know that this woman was never going to be afraid of taking risks with her own work, and it’s all the better for it.

Then, we heard her second album, ‘Trança’, which burrowed deeper into Ava’s process. Now, with ‘Nektar’, there’s more twists and turns in the territory of MPB, bossa, Tropicalismo, and avant garde electronics and soulful ballads. And the wealth of ideas sometimes means that all of these threads can appear in single outings, and it’s a terrific listening experience.

In a recent interview, she said: “I think as an editor, in a cinematographic way, so I don’t start from absolute truths, but from a desire, a drive, as I go about assembling and sewing together the fragments.” Sometimes, it’s got a dreamlike quality, while others, intimate and personal.

With ‘DISFARCE’, it’s got ’70s samba rock elements with achingly lovely strings weaving in and out, before delicate electronics introduce themselves to the mix. The title track sees the electronics pushed to the front, with a stuttering drum machine following the vocals and synth lines, before allowing the MPB guitar work to peep through the wash. ‘ON/OFF’ pushes the electronics harder, making for a space-age bossa gem.

‘ASAS DE ALUGUEL’ is some high-brow shit that really elevates Ava from the rest of the crowd, making for a glorious torch song that sounds part installation, part art-house soundtrack, with gigantic breathing room and North African string arrangements, and nervous drum machines. There’s no-one quite like her, and over the course of ‘NAKTAR’, she’s a breath of fresh air.

Elsewhere ‘CORAÇÃO ENVENENADO’, there’s almost Nu Yacht synth work with a bossa groove that is utterly irresistible. The whole thing sounds like the kind of album you’d hear at some record collectors house and wonder why it isn’t the most famous thing in the whole world – she’s that brilliant.

We’re not sure if likening her music to Tropicalia would be tiring in her native Brazil, especially from some gringo who spends too much time on Discogs, but Ava Rocha is the most exciting thing we’ve heard since we first heard Tom Zé and Os Mutantes. Her inventiveness and originality is something to behold and, while she has an uncanny knack for a sweet melody, like her Tropicalista foremothers and forefathers, she’s doesn’t shy away from full-on abrasiveness, and we love everything about it.

With all these experimentations and big ideas, she somehow manages to make it incredible accessible too. That’s why Ava Rocha is one of our favourite artists on planet earth right now. Away from Brazilian music, we also hear echoes of Kate Bush, as well as mid-period Björk, in that singular attitude to making music and soundscapes, while still being utterly listenable.

Algorithmic listening can see many artists verging on similar themes and sounds, and Ava Rocha is such a distinctive voice that we simply have to embrace her with everything we’ve got. ‘NEKTAR’ is unquestionably one of the finest music releases of 2023 and will feature high on our lists at the end of the year.

Each song strengthens on each listen and is grows richer from all angles on each listen. This is an exceptional album from a peerless performer. Chances are, you don’t know her – now is the right time to correct that.

Sensational stuff. One of the best.