Fascínio e Miragem

Portuguese outfit Holy Nothing have just released Fascínio e Miragem, a collaborative work inspired by the infinite exchange between Portugal and Brazil. The record features a prominent roster of Brazilian artists, including BaianaSystem’s Russo Passapusso and Roberto Barreto, along with Bixiga 70 and Luca Argel. Born in an ever-evolving, shapeshifting cultural scenario, Fascínio e Miragem uses the Portuguese language itself as a path to meeting halfway in this transoceanic journey. The record navigates the ebb and flow of proximity and distance, memory and oblivion, recognition and mutual estrangement between the countries. Within the vast sphere of lusophony, this album comprises a suite of songs sung predominantly as duets, in Portuguese, led by two accents. The album is mainly inspired by the seminal work of the essayist Eduardo Lourenço. Continuing the line of inquiry begun on their previous release, the band found their coordinates for a deeper understanding of this manifold Portugal/Brazil relationship within Lourenço’s book Do Brasil: Fascínio e Miragem. His incisive depiction of how the Portuguese perceive Brazil, and what Portugal signifies for Brazil’s own sociocultural fabric, provides the framework for the themes found here. It’s a relationship born and sustained between fascination and mirage, one that thrives on belonging, questioning, storytelling and erasure. The record never deflects the pain points of history, opting for a heartfelt, genuine approach. It is thus both a tribute to the great essayist and many other ambassadors of this transatlantic cultural bond. This idea is embedded not solely in the ten tracks that constitute the album, but also in its original design concept, developed by Porto-based Koiástudio. Fascínio e Miragem stands as a crossroads, a space where the past is interrogated, the present is danced, and the future is projected onto this shared mother tongue: diverse, plural and in a state of permanent construction. The album got the special vinyl treatment by the hands of Luso-Brazilian label Lusofonia Record Club: a translucent 140g record, printed all over its sleeves and covers, with high-contrast design marked by Pantone colours in beautiful packaging. The physical release was carried in tandem with the global digital rollout, and it’s now available for wholesale/distribution via LRC and its partner 8mm Records.