Tomás Pagán Motta: Tomás Pagán Motta

Nick Drake has become an all too familiar touchstone for budding shoegazing singer/songwriters in the 40 or so years since his untimely passing. That’s not surprising; Drake practically invented the low-cast, emotionally wrought style that breathes so much vulnerability and sensitivity into every song he ever recorded. In that sense, it’s more than nostalgia that makes his music resonate so fully; indeed, he helped create as important a genre as any that’s emerged in modern music in the past half century. That said, it’s inevitable that Washington DC-based musician Tomás Pagán Motta should be tagged with those Drake dictates, given the sad yet beautiful atmospheric set-ups that express his sentiments in such a stunning manner. Cello, pedal steel and Motta’s desolate vocals color these spectral settings and illuminate the music in the process. Despite any obvious comparisons, Motta is clearly a remarkable talent in his own right, and an artist that will ultimately garner all the attention he deserves on his own.