Record Reviews

TAMARA OBROVAC ~ ULIKA REVIVAL UNIT 4529 (Barcode: 7640114795299) ~ CROATIA ~ Jazz Recorded: 2013 Released: 2014 This is the ninth album by the Croatian vocalist / songwriter Tamara ObrovacFind albums by this artist. Recorded with her quartet, which includes Croatian pianist Matija DedicFind albums by this artist, Slovenian bassist Ziga GolobFind albums by this artist and Croatian drummer Krunoslav LevacicFind albums by this artist, the album presents twelve songs composed by Obrovac, who also wrote the lyrics to most of the songs. Two of the songs are wordless vocalese. As the title suggests, the album presents re-visited versions of songs Obrovac recorded on her second album "UlikaFind albums with this title" from 1998. The album was beautifully recorded at the Artesuono Studio in Udine (Italy) and engineered by Stefano AmerioFind albums by this artist. This album is obviously more Jazz oriented than many of the other albums by Obrovac, which are much more Jazz-World Fusion oriented. Nevertheless her Istrian roots, both musically and as reflected by the local Istrian dialects she uses, are very strongly present here as well. The piano trio accompaniment tips the balance towards Jazz, and yet there is a plentitude of ethnic elements present. The resulting album is a great adventure featuring an orgy of rhythms and emotions elegantly wrapped up and arranged to fit into a Jazz oriented idiom, with brilliant performances by the vocalist and the instrumentalists all the way through. Obrovac fells completely at ease singing lyrics and wordless vocalese and in both cases her sensuous voice is able to express a wide range of emotions. The instrumental work by all three players is first class, with the piano obviously supplying most of the melodic and harmonic support, but which also features superb contributions by the rhythm section. In today´s world, which produces mostly repetitive derivative music, such originality, as the one displayed here, is even more outstanding. The album is fascinating from start to finish and the often minimalistic accompaniments are masterpieces of subdued excellence. Overall this is an excellent and very original vocal Jazz album, which should make connoisseurs of vocal Jazz very happy, especially in view of the fact that bold statements in that area are extremely rare, even on the European scene. People searching for challenging and highly aesthetic music are invited to take a plunge into the world of Tamara Obrovac, which should be not only very enjoyable but also very educational. Well done!

Updated: 23/05/2017Posted: 23/05/2017

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