Spotify has divided opinion amongst music fans for many a year now. Some enjoy being able to peruse the large collection of music at will, sampling dozens of artists and hundreds of songs each month. Some resent the small fees paid to artist for their contribution, and the culture it builds up of musicians being expendable commodities. That, however, is a topic for another day. One positive to the current trend in music production is that, every so often, an artist can fall into your playlist and change your life within 3 and a half incredible minutes. The shuffle button brought to Novo Amor, and I am forever grateful that it did.
I have developed a liking over recent years for more relaxed, more chilled out music than I used to enjoy when I was younger. I grew up on Led Zeppelin and AC/DC, I idolised Jimi Hendrix and Slash, so to take a turn towards soft acoustic tunes and dreamy melodies might seem peculiar to some. Whether it is a slowing down with age, or a shift in the current music trend that I am trying to engage with I’m not sure, but there are few who have captivated me in quite the same way that this artist did from the very first ringing guitar chord.
Ali John Meredith-Lacey, better known as Novo Amor, is a Welsh born musician who began his musical journey with the release of his debut EP Woodgate, NY way back in March 2014. He has a number of albums, EPs, singles, and collaborations released to date, and has explored a wide array of styles during his decade and a bit of producing music. He combines simple yet stunning guitar riffs with a falsetto voice that somehow manages to calm and invigorate all within the same song. His melodies can carry you away to a blissful dreamscape within seconds, and poetic and smoothly structured lyrics are a welcome departure from a lot of modern, manufactured music.
Lacey began recording and producing music in response to a relationship break up, hence the name Novo Amor, Portuguese for “new love”. He said that he felt like this was him expressing his replacement for this loss with music, his new love, and that certainly comes across in so many of his songs. There is a sorrow in them that tears at the heartstrings, and yet within the same tune he can mend and help to make sense of that sorrow for you too. It is a special kind of artist that can reduce you to an emotional wreck, and yet leave you with a feeling of absolute serenity when the final note rings out. Take Oh, round lake as an example, from his 2018 album Birthplace. The song draws up the image of a sad departure, leaving behind something wonderful or meaningful, and yet being at peace with it. capturing both ends of the spectrum of human emotion is a gift, and a rare one at that.
There are some that compare him, not unfairly, to Bon Iver, the American indie-rock band created by the incredibly talented multi-instrumentalist Justin Vernon. While some mock the similarities, noting a mirroring in everything from the artist’s moniker (both loosely translated European phrases), to the obscure and oddly named song titles, this is not an aspersion that should cause Lacey any sleepless nights. If we’re being honest, there is barely any higher praise than being compared to one of the greatest musicians of the last 2 decades, but in reality, Novo Amor is far more than just a Bon Iver tribute. He has taken the beauty and grandiosity of the Bon Iver’s self-titled second album and run harder and further in the pursuit of that musical ideology than even Vernon has with his previous releases. No one can doubt Bon Iver’s impact on the indie music scene, inspiring almost every acoustic artist I’ve ever spoken to, but his boundary pushing has taken him and the band in a different direction over the last 2 albums. Novo Amor’s collection of songs feels like the follow up I wish Bon Iver had written.
Finding new music is always a good day for me, as it is no doubt for many who read this. While new technology and streaming sites have made more music more accessible than ever, it has also diluted the pool and made it harder to sift through the deluge of mediocrity that we are often subjected to in the charts or on most radio stations. Finding that new artist or band that sparks life back into you again is special, the one that reminds you why you fell in love with music all those years ago. Hearing Bon Iver play skinny love on Jools Holland all those years ago stirred something in me that has never since stayed still. Discovering Novo Amor felt like finding Bon Iver all over again, and I can’t think of any higher praise for an artist than that.
Upcoming dates, releases, merchandise and more can be found here: www.novoamor.co.uk
Article by James Heaton
