Showing posts with label Pablo Embon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pablo Embon. Show all posts

10/04/2018

Instrumental Jazz Review: Pablo Embon-Nobody’s Land

Release Date: October 17th, 2018
Label: Independent

Now here is an artist I was anticipating a great new release from, Pablo Embon.  I had the very distinct pleasure of reviewing The World Within (2016) and The Funky Side of The Road (2017). And now the latest release Nobody’s Land is ready for all you jazz aficionados to consume. This keeps the string of fresh releases coming and my ears are paying attention.

I love jazz, and I do not listen to it enough. Somewhere along the line, I drifted apart from it. The music Pablo delivers reminds me of how wonderful this music is. It also makes me think of many of my favorites such as Al DiMeola, Jean-Luc Ponty and Caldera (with some of the keyboards), and many more. The influences of many different artists are present in Pablo’s music. Once you hear it you will pick up on it. If you are like me, you will love it. He cites Return To Forever as an influence. As you all know that was a group of superstars and each one had their own particular style and sound. That is a good thing in my estimation. 

Nobody’s Land tends to draw from those influences and the mix of sounds you will hear on the album is a tribute to the many talents of the artists. One the best examples of all the influences tied into one song are “Rubberneck.”  It is a combo of traditional and modern jazz. The guitar is smooth and fluid like traditional jazz should be then the shifting tempo introduces some piano, which adds another layer of texture to consider. It gives it some juice and jumps if you will. There is background jazz, the kind that blends into your surroundings, then there is thinking man’s jazz, which is more cerebral.  In that sense I mean, you are recognizing all the changes and the tremendous effort that must have gone into recording all this music, then putting it all together. That is an immense task to accomplish. If you don’t really appreciate the artistry that you are hearing then you really are not “listening.”

Pablo wrote and produced all of his music and he also performed it all with several different configurations of guitars and keyboards (listed below for you gear freaks). He is the ultimate D.I.Y. indie musician. I always thought of him as a guitar player, it looks that way on this cover. Do not let one picture persuade you in one direction. On Nobody’s Land, he is equally impressive on the various types of keyboards. At times you get that smoke-filled lounge feeling and others the get-up and dance nightclub feeling with his music, and others the kick back and just soak it all in mood hits you…all of it soothes the soul. This artist gets it all covered for my discerning tastes.

This may be Nobody’s Land but this is Pablo Embon’s world of music. With each album released he takes it to the next level. I look forward to what he comes up with next year! 

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck
October 4, 2018

Note: The newly remastered version of Nobody's Land is now available exclusively on Pablo's website follow this link: https://www.pablo-embon.com/music-download/nobody-s-land-buy/

Founder of:

Review Provided By MuzikMan Reviews & News

Tracks:
01. Dragonfly
02. Absent Minded
03. The Days We’ve Lived
04. Wistful Smiles
05. Tell Your Story
06. Same Old, Same Old
07. End of Summer
08. Nobody’s Land
09. Unveiled
10. Rubberneck
11. Washed Out
12. Estela
13. Bonus Track: Morning T (Remix)



Pianos:
Ravenscroft 275 Acoustic Piano
TruePianos
Rhodes Electric Piano
Wurlitzer Electric Piano
Yamaha CP70 Electric Piano
Roland V-Piano
Synth Rack: Various

Guitars:
Ovation Acoustic Guitar Standard Elite 2778AX
Yamaha NTX900FM Nylon Guitar
Ibanez PM 120 NT Electric Guitar
12th String Acoustic Washburn WD10SCE12



11/15/2016

Instrumental Jazz/World Review: Pablo Embon-Funky Side of The Road

Release Date: December 19, 2016
Label: Independent

The last album I heard from Pablo Embon was The World Within back in March. It rapidly became the most read review and remains at #1 on my Write A Music Review site. So, at this point my expectations are already set, I expect more of same…great music, quality sound and a good mixture of genres. So now we have the arrival of Funky Side of The Road coming out in December. It lived up to my expectations in every way possible.

Some of the tracks serve as a good jam session and others have more middle of the road run times. The mixture of jazz, rock and world is very enticing to a listener seeking a variety of sounds or all of them combined. Pablo keeps it fresh and moving from start to finish on this recording.
There is a lot to take in amongst the 12 instrumental tracks on Funky Side of The Road. The operative phrase that is best suited to encapsulate this project is “variety is the spice of life.” Pablo puts ample amounts of spice in his music to give it a life all its own.

“Midnight Blues” reminded of me of a favorite album from the Al Di Meola Project titled Soaring Through A Dream. That was also the year I saw him in San Francisco playing cuts from that album. The track is atmospheric and landing right in the middle of jazz and blues. They are in the same family traveling the same road but take different exits if you will. There is nothing more powerful in a listening experience than validation and familiarity with other favorite artists. It is like being in the here and now and looking back to the past all at the same time.

The tastefully done “Misfortune” has a late night smoky club vibe to it. Delicate and pronounced keyboards make their entrance and pull you away into dreamland. Not quite the funky side until the next track starts. 

The playful and provocative “Naughty Lucy” sounds a little Steely Dan goes to the carnival and never gets off the ride. Or better yet, you the listener has a free pass to stay on and you decide to get off (when the track ends!). The carefree playful mood of the track puts a smile in your heart and gets your feet tapping or doing an outright dance on floor, whatever comes first, it works on you and gets you up and out of your seat.

“Our Last Dance” seems like it would be a fitting way to close out the album because of the track name alone. However, this is not the case here, Pablo keeps you guessing and more importantly entertained throughout the run of this album. This one is more of a traditional jazz number that is as smooth and pristine as a shiny new car on the showroom floor. It hollers out to you and invites you to sit down and take a test drive.

Funky Side of The Road is indie music at its very best. A multitude of talent is presented and you get a front row seat to some tastefully done tracks, some have a slower pleasing pace while others grab you and take you for jog around the block and keep you energized. When all is said and done you just heard a very solid and entertaining album full of instrumental jazz and world music.
I took more than a test drive I was there at the starting gate and went to the finish line listening to a fine group of tracks presented by one multi-talented artist.

4/5 Stars

Key Tracks: Midnight Blues, Naughty Lucy, Our Last Dance

Tracks: 
01. Is that You?
02. Golden Peak
03. 2222
O4. Wedding Day
O5. Green Lizard
O6. Our Last Dance
07. The Time Has Come
08. Naughty Lucy
09. Misfortune
10. One Day Left
11. Midnight Blues
12. Fools Game (Unplugged)
 
Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck
November 15, 2016
Founder of:

Review Provided By New Age Music Reviews

3/16/2016

Jazz Review: Pablo Embon-The World Within

Release Date: March 18, 2016
Label: Independent
Website


Pablo Embon is a remarkably talented artist. He has released his 15th album titled The World Within. The album was performed, recorded, mixed and produced by Embon between June 2015 and February 2016 in Israel. Amongst the 13 tracks there is a multitude of jazz stylings.

As a listener this is sheer delight to hear such talent and diversity on display. As an individual with the role of reviewing said music it is quite an undertaking. I mean that as the sincerest form of flattery by the way.

The influences Pablo has are many and 99% of them are artists I love so it is no wonder I found it easy to fall into this music like it was an old friend. Jazz is very complex music, a true art form that deserves respect and the full attention of a listener. Lord knows if you have a lapse in your listening you are bound to miss something prolific or even a subtle nuance that changes the entire direction of a song.

It is hard to choose a place to start with this magnificent recording but as usual I like to focus on 3 or 4 tracks that stood out for my ears and musical palette. First let me say how much I have always loved jazz and although I hear elements of it in much of the music I have the opportunity to review, I rarely have the chance to take in so many different forms of the genre in one sitting as I have with The World Within.

“Peeling Off” caught my attention first with the title itself. This was like peeling off the layers of something to find something underneath, then doing it again and again. For instance the peeling of the musical onion can be a wonderful thing for a musician to experience and even more so for the music fan to hear it. This track was all about the grandeur and elegance of the piano. Embon certainly pays due respect to the ivory keys with the wonderfully rhythmic and pleasant journey.

“The Real Thing” for me was the expression of jazz from beginning to end. It reminded me so much how I came to love this music in the first place. The all-important percussion, the gentle tapping of the symbols, the guitar accentuating the tinkling of the piano as the bass and drums fall into sync. This is traditional jazz that changes over to a more modern sound nearly half way through. It was like listening to Dave Brubeck morphing into Chick Corea (worthy of note are the electric keyboards). I loved the back and forth transitions, and how in one track a listener gets to experience how jazz music has progressed into what it is today. Not only is it “The Real Thing,” it is a tribute to the art.

“What I've Heard” is one of the more interesting tracks and the one that steps away from the others. One cannot help but notice how different it sounds even though the entire album offered a good helping of different jazz styles throughout. This track while having a foundation of jazz to work with, takes everything one step further with the steady and proud pounding of military drums that echo the past and usher in the future once the keyboards come rolling in. The orchestral maneuvers bring a cinematic theme to your mind’s eye easily, like the very beginning or end of a favorite movie soundtrack. It made me think of John Wayne riding a horse across a vast expanse in the Wild West. All the changing emotions and atmospheres are packaged ever so tidily in this track.

You are bound to find The World Within the music after one listen. I listened three times and kept finding more. Welcome to the incredibly entertaining world of Mr. Pablo Embon!

5/5 Stars

 
Key Tracks: Peeling Off, The Real Thing, What I’ve Heard

Tracks:

01. The World Within
02. Last Falling Angel
03. Amor Latino
04. Coming Back
05. More For Less
06. The Ride Home
07. Leave the Lights on
08. The Moon For You
09. The Real Thing
10. Distinctive
11. Fly Away
12. What I've Heard
13. Peeling Off

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck- Write A Music Review Founder

March 16, 2016

Review Provided By Write A Music Review