MICHAEL PALLAS

GATEWAY

Truth Revolution Recording Collective

Michael Pallas, trombone/composer; Yeissonn Villamar, piano; John Benitez, bass; Jonathan Barber, drums; Nelson Matthew Gonzalez, percussion; Ghazi Omair, spoken word; Lomar Brown, alto saxophone.

Michael Pallas is a trombonist, an educator, and a composer who is featured on a spanking, brand new project called “Gateway.”  It features a mind-bending fusion of jazz, Hip Hop, Latin and Avant-garde all on the same debut album.  It’s amazing how he blends various genres on this singular album, and makes it sound completely natural.

Pallas opens with “Life On Mars” a title that sounded like I was going to hear a very Avant-garde jazz recording. Instead, the song was painted with Latin undertones and a bebop flair.  His original composition began as a very melodic, almost smooth jazz piece. Lomar Brown is featured on saxophone along with Pallas on trombone. They dance together harmonically. Pallas steps into the spotlight to shine on his instrumental solo. On a song called “Streaming Hope” John Benitez steps forward to take a noteworthy solo on bass.

By the time we get to a tune called “Patient(s)” a song only long enough for an interlude, we have stepped into a funk/fusion groove. There is the taste of hip-hop flavor, repetitious and hypnotic. This is followed by “Disu’s Dream”, a rumba written to celebrate the short life of Michael’s friend, trombonist Jason Disu. He passed away in 2021. This tune’s arrangement whisks us away to the shores of Cuba. Yeissonn Villamar explores the eighty-eight keys during his piano solo. I would like to have heard more fire and excitement from Villamar. Drummer Jonathan Barber, along with Nelson Matthew Gonzalez who is poppin’ on percussion certainly have laid down a groove to inspire energy and excitement.

Pallas was born in Los Angeles to a Dominican mother and European father. I can tell he loves Latin music.  He began to study piano in the first grade. At age eleven, he fell in love with the trombone. The “Counterfeit Blues” tune is all hip hop featuring Ghazi Omair who speaks about police brutality and the murder of George Floyd in spoken word.  This morphs into “The Verdict” composition, that quickly becomes one of my favorites.

“I’m excited to share all these ways of playing and approaching new styles of music on the trombone,” Pallas says in his press package.

Inspired by four great jazz trombonists, J. J. Johnson, Curtis Fuller, Steve Turre and Papo Vasquez, Pallas shows serious conviction when playing his instrument.  But what I genuinely enjoy are his musical concepts, his composing talents, and his uniqueness as a producer.  He brings young, fresh energy wrapped into his tunes.

The title tune, “Gateway” is full of funk.  His composition called “Next Exit” is fusion, hip hop and contemporary jazz. It features the bass and a funky groove. This song exemplifies how Michael Pallas loves mixing it up. “Today and Forever” spotlights the Pallas trombone technique on this beautiful ballad. The pianist, Yeissonn Villamar, is very impressive and emotional on his solo this time around.

Pallas is originally from Phoenix, Arizona, now based in New York City. On this project, he includes mambo, hard bop, afrobeats and hip hop into his musical vernacular.  When he’s not in the studio or playing local gigs with his own group, Pallas gigs with the Steven Oquendo Latin Jazz Orchestra, the Soul Science Lab, Antibalas, and Tipica 73.  He has also performed with Abdullah Ibrahim.

On this debut album, Pallas shows us his love of various musical styles. He weaves them into his compositions like sugar and butter in a cake recipe. This project is sweet and rich with various cultures.  It tastes of the uniquely special ingredients that go into jazz: a sprinkle of improvisation, some spicy rhythms, and the originality of the Pallas compositions, flavored by the musicians who interpret these tunes.

Reviewed by Dee Dee McNeil

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