Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » : Salomea

: Salomea

By Tyran Grillo
March 23, 2020
View read count

Salomea is a genre-hopping group led by Cologne-based vocalist Rebekka Salomea Ziegler, and in this self-titled debut it reveals as much about what influences and inspires its members as about the newness those musicians can fashion from socio-cultural building blocks. Remarkable for such a song-focused project is how much each member stands out in relief. From the opening skitter of "Magnolia Tree," for instance, we recognize the ability of drummer

Leif Berger

drums

" data-original-title="" title="">Leif Berger to transport the listener into a sound-world all Salomea's own. Add to that the spacy touches of keyboardist

Yannis Anft

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Yannis Anft and the bass of

Oliver Lutz

bass, acoustic

" data-original-title="" title="">Oliver Lutz, and one has a formula for atmospheric integrity. Amid this gorgeousness, the bandleader's voice comes across as smooth yet barbed, waiting to catch on to anything and everything in its path as a means of creative absorption. Berger's brilliance is further evident on "Letter No. 1," in which themes of pent-up anger and release feed a deeply rooted feeling of infraction in dire need of resolution. It's like watching a relationship in reverse, spinning blind joy out of inner turmoil.

Salomea herself is a wonder, navigating complex emotional territories without a compass. From the spoken-word bliss of "Do It All" and "Bardarbunka" (which sports the noteworthy line, "there's no need to reinvent Never Never Land") to the personal soundings of "M," she understands the vitality of harmony in a dissonant world. And somewhere, between the ambience of "Letter No. 2" and the a capella interlude of "Baby," she builds a wall of words over which we are invited to climb in search of our own relations to meaning.

Lyrically speaking, Salomea is a far-reaching songwriter, looking within to figure the without (and sometimes vice versa). She navigates changes, both musical and experiential, with a depth charge of emotion. Like a telepathic people watcher, she catches thoughts of passersby and holds each like a chunk of ore up to her jeweler's glass, leaving the rest up to the polishing cloths of our attention.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Magnolia Tree; Shout; Do It All; Baby; Letter No. 1; Letter No. 2; Lady; Bardarbunka; Hopscotch; M; Grave-D.

Personnel

Rebekka Ziegler

vocals

Yannis Anft

piano

Oliver Lutz

bass, acoustic

Leif Berger

drums

Additional Instrumentation

Niels Klein: tenor saxophone (5), clarinet and contra-alto clarinet (8).

Album information

Title: Salomea | Year Released: 2018 | Record Label: Klaeng Records

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Iga
< Previous

Can Jazz Survive COVID-19? China Has...
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.