Newcomer, Alisa Amador's song opens with a poem in Spanish about the experience of growing up Latinx in this country.
lyrics
Nudo de raíces
Soy muchos pedacitos de muchos lugares
Pelo lacio, cola grande
Idiomas mezclados, acento desconocido
Desconocido, por las fronteras, las familias, los mares
Cantando con los ojos, porque no sé la letra
Cantando con el cuerpo que me he dejado amar.
Siempre me faltan las palabras
A veces me duele el desarraigo
Nunca seré “de” un lugar – ni aquí, ni allá
Acepto mi vida como hogar.
Amo, acepto, me amo, me acepto
Respiro, canto,
Y me vuelvo a sembrar
I’ve been told that I am beautiful, and sometimes I believe it
Mostly I get lost in my own mind
I’ve been told that I am worthy of a love beyond believing
That I can’t help but doubt most of the time
What do I do with these feelings?
What do I do with these lines?
Why am I searching for reasons to get lost in my mind?
I’ve been told that when the stars align, it’s divine constellations
But I’m tired of hearing, “honey, what’s your sign?”
I’ve been told that love is beautiful and beyond explanation
But that is only when the stars align
What do I do with these feelings?
What do I do with these lines?
Why am I searching for reasons to get lost in my mind?
To get lost in my mind
Oh, I get lost
in my mind
Nudo de raíces – Translation
I am many pieces of many places
Straight hair, big butt
Mixed languages, unknown accent
Unknown because of borders; of families; of oceans
Singing with my eyes, because I don’t know the lyrics
Singing with the body that I have allowed myself to love
Words always fail me
This uprootedness sometimes hurts
I will never be “from” somewhere – not here, nor there
I accept my life as my home.
I love, I accept. I love myself, I accept myself.
I breathe, I sing,
And I plant myself all over again.
Alec Bowman perfectly captures the dark soil under the pastoral world of British folk with this collection of melancholy originals. Bandcamp New & Notable May 12, 2020