Gabriela Pepino - Let Me Do It

Gabriela Pepino - Let Me Do It
2012, Tratore Music Brasil

 

Berklee educated Brazilian pop/jazz singer Gabriela Pepino has a unique sound.  With a heavy tone and European air ala Edith Piaf, Pepino channels the sounds of American pop and soul music of the 1960’s, 70's and 80's, ala Taylor Dayne.  Her debut album, Let Me Do It, provides an ample introduction to an enigmatic and powerful performer with presence to match.

 

Pepino starts out with "Let Me Do It"; a slinky jazz number build around a snappy bass line. Pepino's tone is a bit heavy at times, but there is an unqualified beauty in her voice. "If I Lived In France" plays like a grade school essay set to music. The arrangement makes it interesting, and the vocal is sufficiently refined, but the lyrics don't match up to the performance. Pepino steps over into a 1970's pop singer/songwriter style for "My Dream Is You".  Pepino carries this off with a diva's panache, accentuated by a sparkling, string laden bridge. "Headache" gets a dose of Chicago (the band) style horns, and a soul infused arrangement. Pepino's heavy tone isn't as nimble in this setting. 

 

"Dose of Scotch" heads back to jazz with a light swing that's airy and fun. Pepino's tone smatters annunciation at times, and the lyrical constructs are pedestrian at best. "Baby" is repetitive to the point of distraction, even wrapped as it is in a light and catchy arrangement. "I Don't Wanna Fight" is a solid 1970's piece of singer/songwriter pop. Pepino once again devolves into deep repetition at the end of the song, but this is otherwise a positive experience.  "Unexpected" is aptly name, a lithe little piano ballad hidden in the Alvin's belly that sounds like a cross between Elton John and Fiona Apple with a solid dose of soul worked on. Pepino shines here, selling the song as if the story were her very own. 

 

Marina Machado joins Pepino on "Deepest Shadow", trading and sharing vocal lines with an appealing natural chemistry. "Change" and "I Can't Wait" are cut from the same 1970's soul/pop cloth, and set up the blues transition that occurs with "My Blues".  Pepino's voice is perfectly matched to the style and sound here as she takes a moment to shine.  Pepino heads into the home stretch with "Someone to Light up My Life", the sort of long and languorous track that exposes vocal weaknesses and puts them on display. There's no exception here, as Pepino's heavy tone is not supple enough to work through the melody line without calling attention to itself. It's a nice song but a poor song choice.   She closes the deal however with the sultry bebop of "I Just Wanna Make Love to You", in what turns out to be the high point of the album. 

 

Gabriela Pepino is a talented vocalist with a unique sound.  Her voice lends itself more easily to certain styles and sounds than others, a lesson that was not fully learned when she recorded Let Me Do. The album is nonetheless a positive listening experience with a few bumps along the way.  Pepino has the sound and the force of personality to a major international force in music.  Song selection, as always, is the key.

 

Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5)

 

Learn more at www.gabrielapepino.com.

Review: Elaine Faye - Matters Of The Heart

Elaine Faye - Matters Of The Heart
2010, Elaine Faye

San Diego’s Elaine Faye is a born-and-bred California girl with a big soulful sound who’s been turning some heads in the San Diego area. Faye considers the road her home, having moved over twenty-seven times and living a nearly nomadic life.” Like many artists, Faye’s musical roots began in her childhood church. Her personal life was full of much more in the way of drama, with a father sent to jail and a mother who passed away while he was incarcerated. Above all, Faye is a survivor. Based on the back story, you might be justified in expecting a lot out of Faye’s debut album, Matters Of The Heart.

Matters Of The Heart opens with “Just Want You”, showing off a distinctive voice on a repetitive and derivative song. You’ll remember this one because it will likely be the first time you heard Faye’s voice, but the song itself will pass from memory quickly. A similar vibe exists on “Gave Me Away” and “Melt For You”. “Don’t Miss Out” finds Faye raising the level a bit vocally, but the song itself sticks with the same bland, lifeless feel. Faye finds better traction with X’s and O’s, a lively song that works in a more stripped down setting. It’s almost as if Faye is vocally repressed by greater depths of instrumental layering. When an arrangement gets down to the roots, Faye is suddenly freed and she really shines both in sound and animus. Faye maintains the energy level and adds a lyric component on “Remind Me To Breathe”. “Sometimes” and “Past Loneliness” close out the album at the newer level of vibrancy.

It takes a while for Elaine Faye to hit her stride on Matters Of The Heart. Once she does, it’s a solid effort. The first three to four songs can border on being a tough listen. Faye has a voice you’ll want to listen to; a natural sound that has the meaty alto that goes well with the blues and a suppleness that allows Faye to do almost anything she can stretch her range to. Ultimately it’s the material on Matters Of The Heart that doesn’t always live up to the artist. When Faye is on, the album works very well.

Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5)

Learn more about Elaine Faye at http://www.elainefaye.com/ or www.myspace.com/elainefaye. Matters Of The Heart is available as a download from Amazon.com.

Review: Sara Haze - My Personal Sky

Sara Haze - My Personal Sky
2009, Strategic Alliance Records America

Sara Haze is a 19-year old California singer-songwriter who is wise beyond her years. A professional singer from the age of twelve, Haze has ruled stages from Canadian Music Week to SXSW to Popkomm. You might have heard Haze’s songs on shows MTV’s The Hills, and you’ll be certain to hear her from a slew of outlets over the next few years. Haze projects a distinctive authenticity; a sweet and sunny disposition underwritten by an emotional toughness built from self-confidence. These qualities come through in spades on Haze’s debut album, My Personal Sky.

My Personal Sky opens with "Beautiful Day", a highly produced pop/rock anthem about finally coming into the clear after hard times. This could be the perfect summer song both for message and feel. If "Beautiful Day" finds the right breaks this could be a huge hit for Haze. "Melt Into You" is a big-time romantic rocker that is not only another potential hit but also a likely favorite for mix tape makers. Haze shows a bit more vulnerability on "My Own Hands To Hold", and angst-filled ballad about a relationship stuck in a bad cycle. The song itself is fair, but Haze turns it into something more with a vibrant, emotionally charged but not over-the-top performance.

In order for an album to really break out and become a cornerstone recording for an artist, there has to be at least one song that could be called magical in there somewhere. Sara Haze finds that magic with "Every Heart"; rumination on all the things that make our life stories special. "Every Heart" is the sort of tune that could become the signature song of an artist over the course of a long career; one that becomes so identified with an artist that others cover it at their peril. The commercial possibilities for "Every Heart" are endless. It's a great pop number, but also has the feel of a keynote song from a Broadway show or the opening theme from a major motion picture.
Haze gives listeners a different look on "Mama", a sassy and soulful rocker that could be "R-E-S-P-E-C-T" for the modern age. Haze gives a powerful positive voice to self-respect and standing up for what you believe in a turn that's both a vibrant musical statement and a defining song as a potential role model for young women (people) everywhere. What makes "Mama" work so well is that Haze isn't trying to be like anyone else here; there's no duplicity or attempt to capture another's zeitgeist. Haze is just being herself and the rest all follows. "Lovely" is another powerful ballad with a positive message. Anyone who’s ever felt pressured by someone they love to be something they aren't will identify strongly with this tune. The licensing potential here is huge; and while the commercial radio pop of the song is low because of the tempo and arrangement, the universality of the message might be enough to overcome such things.

Haze rips though "Counterfeit Hero" with ease before jumping into "Shine"; a tune about not letting the dark times get you down. Haze implores listeners to make and be their own light in a powerfully positive song of self-actualization. Haze only seems to get distracted once on the entire album, as "The Border" just seems a bit out of synch with the rest of My Personal Sky, but recovers nicely with the rock anthem "Church Of Memories". Haze seems intent on re-iterating her support of self-actualization over faith in something else in a closer that affirms Haze's prowess as a pop songwriter and performer.

My Personal Sky, in a perfect world, would be the sort of pop/rock album that launches Sara Haze into the musical stratosphere. Haze is no plastic, singing about her beliefs in a firm voice that evokes vulnerability run through with a spine of smoky steel. It's hard to imagine My Personal Sky not making big waves on radio, television and in motion pictures. This sort of pop/rock hybrid is rare these days, and there is an appetite for such hybrids, but the shambles of commercial radio and the absolute flooding of net-based radio by anyone with a home computer and recording software makes it a bit harder for the diamonds to shine. Sarah Haze is a diamond, and My Personal Sky sparkles with the light of her sunny disposition and the strength of her songwriting and voice. Don't miss this one.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Sara Haze at http://www.sarahaze.com/ or www.myspace.com/sarahaze. You can purchase My Personal Sky on either CD or Download from Amazon.com. Downloads are also available through iTunes.

Review: Kristina Train - Spilt Milk

Kristina Train - Spilt Milk
2009, Blue Note Records

Kristina Train was destined to wind up where she is. Yesterday, Blue Note Records released Train’s debut album, Spilt Milk. Blue Note has pursued Train for several years, but at her mother’s assistance she went to college before pursuing her dream. In the process, Kristina Train learned more about the world, but she also learned more about herself. More confident and self-assured than she was at nineteen years of age, Train approached Spilt Milk with a clear idea of what she wanted to accomplish. Recorded and produced by Jimmy Hogarth (Corinne Bailey Rae, Duffy, James Blunt, Spilt Milk makes Train’s influences abundantly clear without sounding like anyone other than Kristina Train. Shades of Aretha Franklin, Raelette Mable and Karen Dalton can be heard, but the voice that emerges can be no one than the Savannah Georgia native with the wonderfully textured voice.

Train opens with the title track, sounding like a sultrier, worldlier version of Norah Jones. Train mixes the modern silk of Jones with the classic Rhythm N Blues sound of artists like Aretha Franklin and Tina Turner and newcomer Melinda Doolittle. Spilt Milk plays like a classic tune with a theatrical feel to it. No Man's Land keeps that classic R&B/Soul feel in a diva-like performance from Train. The melody is one that will get stuck in your brain, and you'll find yourself swaying along. Don't Remember and Don't Beg For Love have similar styles, leading into the Turner-esque It's Over Now, a song steeped in the history of R&B but which could very well chart today.

Train has a true Diva moment on You're Still Going To Lose, showing the presence and dramatic sense to command attention with the right material. This is the biggest highlight of the album. Moon Rivers And Such is more in the Norah Jones realm, but the gentle rasp and power in Train's voice set her apart. Train is able to capture a classic sound while coming across young and hip here and throughout the disc, an unusual quality that should do well for her. Call In The Maker is one of the more intriguing songs on the disc; mixing elements of Gospel, Soul and The Blues in a dynamic performance that sounds like it might have come right out of Muscle Shoals. Half Light is all about regrets that stem from entering (or re-entering) a relationship you shouldn't be involved in. The writing here is nuanced, but Train is chomping at the bit here to break out and the song never quite allows that opportunity. Train closes out with Far From The Country, a classic love song with a Motown feel to it.

Kristina Train has an amazing voice, and she gets to display it amply on Spilt Milk. The down-tempo nature of the album might restrict here a tad here and there; the moments when she's allowed to truly soar are tempered by slower material that's not conducive to the big impressive belt she's capable of, although they do happen. Along with folks like KT Tunstall, Melinda Doolittle and Joss Stone, Kristina Train looks to bring some old school magic to modern music. Look for Spilt Milk to garner Train a lot of critical praise and expect her to be around for a good long while.

Rating: 3.5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Kristina Train at http://www.kristinatrain.com/ or www.myspace.com/kristinatrain. You can purchase Spilt Milk as either a CD or download from Amazon.com. You can also download Spilt Milk through iTunes.

Review: Smokey Robinson - Time Flies When You're Having Fun

Smokey Robinson - Time Flies When You're Having Fun
2009, ROBSO Records/ADA Distribution

It's been fifty years since Smokey Robinson stepped into the limelight as one of the ubiquitous faces of Motown Records. Over time the acknowledgements have compounded, whether being honored on Hollywood's Walk Of Fame, receiving an honorary Doctorate from the Berklee College Of Music, a Rhythm & Soul Heritage Award from ASCAP or Kennedy Center Honors, Smokey Robinson has had an artistic and personal impact on music and on our culture. Robinson is known for numerous hits with The Miracles and on his own (Shop Around, Tracks Of My Tears, Tears Of A Clown, I Second That Emotion, Cruisin' and many others), but he's also written a slew of hits for artists such as The Temptations (My Girl, The Way You Do The Things You Do), Mary Wells (My Guy), The Marvelettes (Don't Mess With Bill) and Marvin Gaye (Ain't That Peculiar, I'll Be Doggone). Robinson doesn't sit on his laurels, however, returning on August 25, 2009 with an album full of 10 originals and 2 cover tunes: Time Flies When You're Having Fun. The voice shows a little wear from fifty years of crooning but is none the worse for it all. There's no one quite like Smokey Robinson.

Time Flies When You're Having Fun opens with the title track, a poetic monster but melodically a bit less than what I was expecting. Robinson has always had a distinctive talent for lyrics, and his voice is still unquestionable even with the toll of fifty years in the business, but something about this track just didn't click for me. Robinson's take on Norah Jones' Don't Know Why is true to the original but has more of a live feel. Robinson still records to this day with the entire band in one room, giving a more organic feel to the album and to this track in particular. Girlfriend finds Robinson digging into a more modern R&B/Dance feel, played organically. The result is a song with serious commercial value without compromising the timeless spirit that runs through the heart of Robinson's music.

Joss Stone steps in for a duet with Robinson on You're The One For Me. Stone tries to adapt a more lyric vocal style here to meld with Robinson's trademark sound but it just doesn't work out well for her. When singing with Robinson she sounds fine, but the heavy vibrato that creeps into Stone's softer sound makes a mess of the vocal line. This came as a surprise as I generally enjoy Stone's voice, but not here. One Time is an active R&B song that's as smooth as they come. I don't know if it will pull much weight on commercial radio with Robinson on vocals Robinson is a little outside their demographic, but put this song with a young up-and-comer and you've probably got a top ten hit. The biggest treat on the disc is Please Don't Take Your Love; hearing two legends such as Smokey Robinson and Carlos Santana trade lead lines is worth the price of admission on its own.

Whatcha Gonna Do is a soulful love jam with some serious jazz-inspired piano work. The vocal line gets to be a little repetitive late in the song, but overall it's a strong track. Satisfy You had a classic feel, along the lines of I Second That Emotion, but done in a modern R&B arrangement. The melody is archetypal for Robinson's songbook and may well join the ranks as one of his best songs. You're Just My Life features Robinson in a duet with the exquisite India.Arie. India.Arie holds her own alongside the Motown legend, providing listeners with a duet to remember. Robinson closes out Time Flies When You're Having Fun with an unnamed bonus track that turns out to be Robinson's take on The Jackson Five's One More Chance. Whether this was a late add-on in tribute to Jackson or planned ahead of time it's a classy rendition from a classy artist.

Time Flies When You're Having Fun is a wondrous mix of old and new; Smokey Robinson doesn't sacrifice himself or his sound but does manage to mix in a bit of the sounds of today with classic songwriting that would have been at home at any time in the Motown Era. The album has a couple of ups and downs but on the whole is a strong effort that should satisfy existing fans while opening the ears of a new generation to the wonder that is Smokey Robinson. Very well done.

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

Time Flies When You’re Having Fun drops on August 25, 2009. You can pre-order the CD through Amazon.com, or you can pre-order the download through iTunes.

Review: Kirsten Price - Guts & Garbage

Kirsten Price - Guts & Garbage
2008, KPI

Female vocalists who can sing soul music are all the rage again. Names like Christina Aguilera, Amy Winehouse, Macy Gray and Joss Stone sell CDs, MP3s and concert tickets by the boatload, but all have surrendered something of themselves to the music industry and its producers. London born and New York City based Kirsten Price brings the same kind of presence and big voice to the table, but Price eschewed the major label path to maintain total creative control over her material. Her debut album, Guts & Garbage is the true test of whether it's worked. Early returns suggest Price did the right thing.

Price worked with producers Frederick Sargolini, Raphael Saadiq (Tony! Toni! Tone!) and Danny Saber (David Bowie, Madonna, Seal) in the process of creating Guts & Garbage, but all on her terms and in her own way. The end result is one of the most daring and hottest records to be released in 2008. Price mixes Soul, R&B and Rock with ambition and raw sexuality that will melt speaker wires, warp amplifiers and probably require a cold shower when you're done listening. Opening with Magic Tree, Price sets to tone quickly with a sultry vocal against minimal instrumentation just to show she's got the vocal goods. Pop and R&B music hasn't seen an opening so sultry in a generation, and Price is just getting warmed up.

All Right dances on a reggae beat and Price's meaty alto sound. Price will remind folks of Fiona Apple right off the bat, but Price can sing rings around Apple. She's got that low, husky alto that turns heads but she can also break out into an upper register with complete clarity and a glorious sound. Fall mixes spoken word French and sung English in a dark and mysterious love song that resonates in transformation through the major chord chorus. Crazy Beautiful is set to be a major pop and dance hit for Kirsten Price. It has the same infectious energy as Lou Bega's Mambo #5 but with real attitude. Don't be surprised if Crazy Beautiful is a major international hit. Ten years ago it would have been guaranteed. With today's fractious music business and one-note radio wasteland it might take a bit longer, but this song is huge.

Let Me Go opens with a gorgeous orchestral prologue that morphs into an electronic play land in which Kirsten Price can let her voice play. Price makes the most of it here in a piece that is vaguely reminiscent of Milla Jovovich's esoteric The Divine Comedy. Let Me Go mixes elements of R&B, rock and electronic ambience into a rough and beautiful soliloquy that is absolutely unforgettable. Possibilities allows Price one more opportunity to turn your speakers to mush with a vibrant and sensuous performance that will leave listeners more than a little unsettled. Other highlights include 5 Days Old, Freedom and Red Hot.

Kirsten Price isn't the next in a line of Soul/Pop vixens; she's the new face of Soul influenced rock music. Guts & Garbage is more than its name, offering one of the most moving most exciting musical performances I've heard in some time. Kirsten Price is the sort of iconic voice and character the music industry's been waiting for. It's easy to imagine her, twenty years from now as the new Queen of Soul Music. For right now, she's creating on the most vibrant and exciting mixes of Soul, R&B and Rock we've heard in many years. If you don't believe us, consider that some of her tracks have been featured on The L-Word, CSI and Cashmere Mafia even before the album came out! Guts & Garbage is a Wildy's World Certified Desert Island Disc; an instant classic.

Rating: 5 Stars (Out of 5)

You can learn more about Kirsten Price at http://www.kirstenprice.com/ or www.myspace.com/kirstenpricemusic. You can buy a copy of Guts & Garbage at StretchTheSkies.com or at Amazon.com.