GABRIELA MARTINA

STATES

Independent Label

Gabriela Martina, voice/composer/arranger; Maxim Lubarsky, piano/keyboards; Vancil Cooper, drums/percussion; Kyle Miles, acoustic & electric bass; Jussi Reijonen, electric & acoustic guitar; Ben Rosenblum, accordion; GUEST MUSICIANS: Jason Palmer, trumpet/ flugelhorn; Khrys Williams, spoken word; Naseem Alatrash, cello.

The bass and drums open this album with Gabriela Martina’s soprano voice singing staccato notes atop the rhythm of her original composition, “Full Circle.”  This Swiss composer and vocalist examines, (from her perspective) the state of the world, the state of the union and her own state of mind. Thus, the title of her latest album is “States.”

This album seeks to offer solace and comfort. Because humanity exists in a world of spiritual and emotional challenges, Gabriela’s music seems to be saying, we are all going through something.  We all face challenges either mundane and worldly, or spiritual and personal. Gabriela Martina has written each composition on this, her sophomore album, to represent the readjustment of our lives after facing a global pandemic, worldwide political turmoil, and the effect of climate change. She addresses all, using her tension-and-release vocal presentation on the first tune, with the addition of Khrys Williams contributing spoken word. His prose offers both a pep talk and a plea, with a Hip Hop edge.

On “Come on Home” Special Guest, Jason Palmer, adds his spicy flugelhorn to the arrangement, while Martina explains lyrically what home means to her.

“… I think you kind of lose the sense of what home really means.  For me, home has really come to mean the people I call friends and, in the best cases, the people I call family,” she says.

Martina grew up in Switzerland and released her first album in 2016 titled, “No White Shoes.”  Downbeat magazine gave it a four-star review. She spent thirteen years living, studying, and working in Boston and New York City.  While living in America, she established her own booking agency called “Red Velvet Sounds” and became cofounder and curator of a free improv concert series.  At the same time, she was bandleader of her own 6-piece ensemble.  In 2021, she left America and relocated to Amsterdam in The Netherlands.

On “The Circus” Gabriela sings with a Pop music flair.  On “Soso” she becomes a human horn and simply sings melody without words in a very Classical way.  On “Dreams” she adds a lovely cello to the mix played by Naseem Alatrash.

This is experimental music. I cannot call it jazz, because it combines so many genres including rock music, European classical music, the improvisation that jazz inspires, but it leans heavily towards the pop genre.  Martina has a very pop flavored voice.

The addition of Ben Rosenblum’s accordion on certain tunes brings warmth and European culture to her project.  The trumpet of Jason Palmer gives a sensitive nod to jazz during his solo excursions.  However, it is important to remember that the root of jazz is the blues. Also, one of the popular and expressive determinations of jazz comes from the ‘swing’ element in the music.

Although I find some of Martina’s compositions both melodic and creative, they sound more experimental, with a firm lean towards pop music.  I don’t hear her ‘swing’ on a single presentation, and there is no blues base evident.  If this talented vocalist wants validity to her claim of ‘jazz singer,’ she must be able to sing the blues and “to swing” her vocals.

Reviewed by Dee Dee McNeil

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