London-based singer-songwriter and educator Nelda has released her intriguing new concept album "Between Two Worlds", charting an interesting musical and emotional journey. The record tells the story of voluntary displacement. Nelda interviewed songwriters from around the world now living in London and co-wrote songs based on their experiences of leaving home and settling into a new country. This makes its intention, as expressed so gracefully through the musicality and lyrics, surface the myriad emotions and important considerations any such transition presents.
It opens with the captivating single "Everything is Scary", co-written with Italian songwriter Viola Ugolini. The instrumentation is extremely thoughtful and delicate, and exceptionally well thought out with the rhythm section and lyrics, setting the scene to describe how uncertain it can feel to move somewhere you've never been. On the next track, "In-between Two Worlds", it's just Nelda, alone, pondering her status between cultures. The jazzy elements keep one intrigued right from the start.
It's the collaborations that persist in giving this album its diverse vibes. "Not a Bad Thing" brings in that relaxed feel and that feel-good vibe with its Brazilian collaborator Thiago De Sá Jorge. While "Heartache" tackles new beginnings with the help of Bangladeshi artist Hasib Sunny's melodic skills.
Toward the middle of the album, "Aren't We All?" and "Wish I Was Home" keep the pace going smooth with beautiful vocals and soft rhythms to provide space for contemplation. It is collaborations with counterparts from Slovakia’s Katarina Kiktova and Greece’s Adrianos Pandis respectively that raise emotional resonance. The standout "Home is Where I Go" comes via Australian collaborator Etoile Marley's arrangement and performance.
Later tracks continue to explore adjustment themes through global perspectives: the Gabriel Vigo Argentine-paired "On These Streets" floats listeners upward; the sunny charms of "I Wouldn't Be Me" feature an uplifting Ukrainian collaboration with Christina Dmytryk Clark.
Communion gets realized on the rousing "Not a Stranger" written by Soner Ersen and the vocal showcase "Shadow of the Rest".
Instrumentation is culturally fused at the end of the album. The final track "No Place Like Home" does a fine job of binding the cultural journey with its layered Nigerian textures. 'Between Two Worlds' thoughtfully spotlights displacement universals through sensitive global connectivity.
I still remember very well the first time I listened to Nelda's great conceptual album "Between Two Worlds". With it, I knew that Nelda had not written an album but an enriching expedition into universal questions around home, and identity. Being a conceptual album with sensitive genre-blending, this one effortlessly takes the listener to vividly explore what it means to start anew in another land.
Anyone who has wandered between places or stages in life will, through Nelda's vulnerable and bright storytelling in song, find some resonant solidarity and joyous affirmation. Wherever we go, home is where our heart lives. Be sure to stream "Between Two Worlds" in full to experience this resonant musical journey for yourself.