Across Europe, the ’90s was a decade of hope, and that sense of confidence shines through much of the Portuguese pop music of the era. Despite being less stylistically linked, many of these songs are united by their ambition—frequently reaching for the skies through soaring guitars, lofty orchestration or a stratospheric melody. Alongside these supersized numbers, though, sit elegantly intimate ballads and, later in the decade, tracks from angst-ridden artists questioning the earlier optimism—all contributing to the emotional melting pot that came to define the decade.