The first track of an EP should always give an indication of what is in store. Sofia Kourtesis has mastered the art.
The shuffling beats that slowly build on ‘La Perla’ immediately give you the sense that you are on the precipice of something big. It swirls out of control, growing ever more expansive and immersive until you are completely lost in the twinkling soundscape. It is an immersion that never breaks for the entirety of the EP, leaving you in a complete stupor when you emerge from the other side, bewildered, but enlightened.
The Berlin-based, Peruvian artist is making sounds like no one else could even attempt on ‘Fresia Magdalena’. Part of that undoubtedly lies in the authenticity and specificity of the EP. On an extended trip to Sofia’s native Peru, the EP was catalysed into being. Imbued with snippets of recordings from Lima and Magdalena specifically, Sofia breaths the life of the city into each track. It’s a vivid, gorgeous portrait of her home.
‘Nicolas’ is a glistening euphoric offering, whilst the piano-based ‘Juntos’ shares a similar capacity for celebratory. The EP as a whole is lifted by the elation it manages to carry in every beat. It’s brimming with delicious floor-fillers, yet it still manages to retain an introspection that sets it far apart. In its pensive moments, it expands further beyond reach.
‘Fresia Magdalena’ feels like a world of possibility, and vibrancy: there is an undercurrent of unbottled passion running throughout that allows it to skyrocket. That innate optimism leaks into every listen. Sofia Kourtesis manages to craft a sound so vivaciously uplifting that it leaves you bristling with newfound hope.