Category Archives: Previews

Bébé La La and Martha Reich: Award-Winning Singer/Songwriter Songbirds at the Outpost This Weekend

New Mexico is hip deep in talented singer/songwriters, and the two acts headed to the Outpost this weekend most definitely make the cut. Bébé La La, which comprises Alicia Ultan (vocals, guitar, viola) and Maryse Lapierre (vocals, accordion, harmonium), identifies as Albuquerque’s folk Americana Français duo, and they’ll be adding a rock and roll coefficient this weekend, appearing as the Bébé La La Band, with Arnaldo Acosta on drums and Mike Fox on bass. Multi-instrumentalist Martha Reich (the “ch” is pronounced sh), a New England native who settled in Santa Fe 20 years ago, is riding on the wave of her latest album, Brave Bird. It has collected the Gold Medal for Female Vocalist in the Global Music Awards, LA Critics Award for Best Folk Artist, and a Clouzine International Music Award for Best Indie Album, as well as three New Mexico Music Award nominations. She’ll be appearing with her longtime colleague, cellist Michael Kott.

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Engine: Looking for the Light

Engine: Robin Gentien, Pierre Lauth-Karson, Alejandro Tomás Rodriguez. Photo by Trevor Meier.

Back in 2017, when the trio Engine was invited to perform at Tricklock Company’s 17th Annual Revolutions International Theatre Festival and at ¡Globalquerque!, likely no one suspected that it was the beginning of a love affair between the band and New Mexico. Two years later, however, thanks to the Theater Department at UNM and Neal Copperman at AMP Concerts, the Franco-Argentine trio—Alejandro Tomás Rodriguez (vocals, acoustic guitar), Robin Gentien (vocals, electric guitar, cascas), and Pierre Lauth-Karson (vocals, harmonica, shaker)—has established a North American home base in Albuquerque. Last spring, their Encuentros Íntimos (Intimate Encounters) concert series here quickly developed a devoted (and SRO) audience and produced a live recording, Encuentros Íntimos: Unplugged in Albuquerque, and the band also recorded a studio album, Si viene la muerte, before taking off on a four-month European tour. This week, the band—now a sextet for its New Mexico appearances, with the addition of Terry Bluhm (bass), Jefferson Voorhees (drums), and Caro Acuña (percussion)—is launching another set of Encuentros Íntimos. This year’s edition includes four appearances in Santa Fe and four in Albuquerque. Anyone interested in an ecstatic musical experience should mark their calendars accordingly.

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Joe Lovano Brings Trio Tapestry and ‘Peaceful, Beautiful Attitude’ to the Outpost

Joe Lovano. Photo by Craig Lovell.

On Trio Tapestry, his first recording on ECM as a leader, tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano called on pianist Marilyn Crispell and drummer Carmen Castaldi—and his own long history with the likes of Paul Motian, Bill Frisell, Gunther Schuller, and Hank Jones, among others—to create an album of expressive and intimate beauty. The trio will bring their atmospheric grace to the stage at the Outpost on March 12.

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Vocalist Luciana Souza Brings ‘The Book of Longing’ to the Outpost: An Interview

Luciana Souza. Photo by Kim Fox.

Spare, transparent, and penetratingly beautiful, The Book of Longing, the latest release from Brazilian vocalist Luciana Souza, transports the listener into the heart of 10 poems, four from Leonard Cohen’s book of the same name; one each from Edna St. Vincent Millay, Emily Dickinson, and Christina Rossetti; and three from Souza herself. Souza, who composed the music, does not attempt to interpret the poems. Rather, with the help of the exceptionally sympathetic Chico Pinheiro on guitar, Scott Colley on bass, and producer Larry Klein, Souza’s husband and multiple GRAMMY winner, she creates a setting in which the words of the poets resonate freely.

On Wednesday, November 28, Souza, Pinheiro, and Colley will bring those songs and others to the Outpost. I had the opportunity to speak with her by phone a few weeks ago. The interview, lightly edited for brevity, is transcribed below. Continue reading

New Releases: Jazz in Three Flavors from Melford, Sosa, and Jackson

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A few more quick takes on recent releases. Here are three—from Myra Melford’s Snowy Egret quintet, Omar Sosa and Yilian Cañizares, and Javon Jackson—that live in completely different musical universes.

I’ll be guesting on Patti Littlefield’s jazz show on KUNM on Wednesday, November 21, from noon to 1:30 p.m. MT. We’ll be playing a selection from each of these albums and several others. Tune in at 89.9 FM or stream at KUNM.org. Continue reading