Gisela João - Inquieta [CD]

Inquieta (2025) is Gisela João's fifth studio album, a fiercely intimate reimagining of Portuguese protest song that fuses traditional fado phrasing with contemporary folk and chamber-pop arrangements. Recorded largely at Twinville Studios in Carcavelos with arrangers Carlos Rodenas Martinez, Justin Stanton, and Luís "Twins" Pereira, the record channels the 50th anniversary of the 25 de Abril revolution into a set built almost entirely from the repertoire of José "Zeca" Afonso, alongside songs by Paulo de Carvalho, Sérgio Godinho, Fernando Lopes-Graça, and José Mário Branco.

The album moves fluidly between hushed, guitar-led intimacy and full-bodied, almost anthemic swells, letting Gisela's voice carry the political weight of the material into the present. It ranges from the stark, mournful retelling of "A Morte Saiu à Rua" to the defiant surge of "Vejam Bem" and the tender resolve of "Que Amor Não me Engana".