Nneka

Nneka, looking tired, took the stage at one in the morning to finish off the second night of Rolling Stone's showcase at Palm Door. Her set was indeed a sleepy one, but that mood seemed apropos - her music is best enjoyed with a slowly nodding head and heavy lids. Nneka's songs aren't light fare - touching on topics like war and poverty, they have a solemnity about them that made me almost feel guilty for enjoying them so much. But that voice, oh that voice. Born and raised in Nigeria, Nneka is a long lost Lauryn doppelganger, summoning Ms. Hill with every intake and exhale. Her voice has a throaty smoothness, tricked out here and there with Bob Marley's turns of phrase and Erykah Badu's sense of self. She wasn't much to watch on stage, hardly moving and rarely even opening her eyes, but that wasn't the point. The point was the music, and it was right on.