Gomojo is that rare thing in the music business: a band that catapulted to success very early — in large part thanks to radio play on Portugal’s Antena 3 within months of forming — but whose members have not let it go to their head.
In some ways, that’s inevitable because of their sound, described in their early press as psychedelic pop, or dream pop: Gomojo isn’t high-octane rock, and an overinflated ego would jar violently with its laid-back, welcoming sound.
There’s far more to Gomojo than that, however.
Each of the band’s four members — Joe Armitage, Mykle Oliver Smith, Aran McMahon, and Francisco Marcelino, as well as its most recent addition, Mariana Costa — have been playing in other groups for years. It showed during the concert Atlas attended at Musicbox in April: Gomojo has a way of making you feel at home in the stern, hard confines of a nightlife venue, which typically doesn’t come about without confidence honed by regular performing.
And such is the case: Joe is originally from Leeds and has played with several bands there. Ollie, from Wolverhampton near Birmingham, played in a number of projects while living in the U.K.
Aran, who was born in the U.K. to Irish parents and has lived in Lisbon most of his life, has played for over a decade with Lisbon native Francisco in the much-loved local band The Fekks.
So a lot of that warm atmosphere during the live show is intentional.
As Ollie puts it, “I’ve been in bands before where we wanted to be more edgy, more on the fringe.”
“With Gomojo, our songs are about touching the soul and making you dance.”
Joe nods along and adds, “…with slightly melancholic lyrics.”
Having met Joe in person long before I first saw him on stage, I noticed a wonderful change in character between Joe the kind, outgoing bloke from Leeds and “Joe,” lead singer of Gomojo, a popular Lisbon indie rock band — it’s very subtle, much like the sound, but it’s clearly that Joe has a stage personae.
Joe says that character exists so that he can focus on the music and the performance.
“It’s a conscious effort. Once I’m going on stage, I zero in and I’m confident about what I’m doing — just so I can relax in the moment,” he says.
It’s not all planned, however: there’s an obvious ease in the way Ollie and Joe inhabit the same physical space as we chat around a small table outside a tasca near their studio in Arroios. It’s not clear right away, but eventually it’s obvious: there’s a complete lack of oneupmanship. The two support each other as part of something other than the band.
Gomojo formed in 2022 while Joe and Ollie were living in the cultural association space OuriÇo in Parede, just outside Lisbon. Neither was looking to break into the city’s indie music scene — both simply liked playing music, and eventually heard each other’s stuff.
“It was like, ‘Do you have some songs? And I have some songs!’” Joe recalls. “And then we shared them with each other, and then I was, like, ‘Oh, actually, I’ll add a bit of both.”
Ollie nods: “And then we listened to them and were like, this is cool, yeah. Yeah. Yeah!”
One thing led to another, as these things go at cultural associations, and Joe and Ollie were invited to play some songs at an event at Ouriço.
Those two songs ended up being “Wake Up With the Sun” and “Big Dunc.”
“They sounded waaaaay different than they do now,” Ollie says.
“And then we turned into a ‘project,’” Joe adds.
The name came about in much the same way their songs did: in a relaxed spirit of collaboration. Ollie’s full name is Mykle Oliver, and then there’s Joe, so — Go. Mo. Jo.
“Done,” Ollie says.
Aran came in on guitar shortly after, and Gomojo played several “random gigs” around Lisbon, as Joe puts it, rotating through several drummers until they played with Francisco, Aran’s bandmate at The Fekks.
“Francisco was definitely the final piece of the jigsaw — once he jumped in, we thought, ‘This is actually a really good team.’”
A single followed, as an “experiment”: “Hesitator” was released by a local label, Hugo Hugon’s Reverie Records, and it did well, and next thing they knew, Gomojo had their music appear on one of the country’s most popular radio programs on RTP’s Antena 3.
“Hesitator” then got picked as part of the 2024 compilation album dubbed Novos Talentos, put out by FNAC. Gomojo had the recognition of Lisbon’s music aficionados.
Then came the April show at Musicbox, one of the top live music venues in the country, the type of club diehard music fans will fly to for their favorite band. In May, they released their EP.
In December, they’re moving up one more rung of the musical career ladder, with a show at Coliseu Club.
Next stop: festivals? Sports arenas? International touring?
Perhaps. Ollie and Joe hint at some developments, a possible tour of the U.K.
For now, however, Joe and Ollie are writing songs and sharing them with each other.
“It’s still how it happens,” Ollie says.
“We have this dynamic,” Joe adds. “We sort of write skeletons of the songs, and then Aran and Francisco come in and complete it.”
The pair are certain it’s what will work in the long term regardless of where they play.
“We want to be entertainers, having a laugh and taking the piss out of each other a bit. We want it to be fun,” Joe says.
“If you allow yourself to be a conduit for it, the spirit takes you,” Ollie adds, smiling mischievously.
Gomojo’s debut EP, KiN, with Mariana Costa doing guest vocals, came out in May and is available here.
Tickets for the Coliseu show on Dec. 11 are available here.
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