OFFLINE REVIEWS
Radio Avenue Review
Song: "While Everybody Sleeps"
Overall Impression:
Argentinian-born and Israeli based, musician/composer/producer Pablo Embon delivers an exciting blend of jazz/rock fusion and cinematic orchestral music, with his release of "While Everybody Sleeps." This piece opens with a freely played, grippingly taut solo piano section that immediately draws the listener in, preparing them for what lies ahead. Dramatic staccato strings and languishing woodwinds enter, layering haunting melodies upon mesmerizing ostinato figures, building tension until around the 1:46 mark, where the transition to a more harmonically complex jazz piano trio section occurs, with a sweeping, languishing melody and fervent syncopated drumming. Strings and winds return to elaborate and expand on this theme as the drums settle into a more rock-oriented backbeat, before dying out and giving way to the piano fantasy that opened the composition, this time accompanied by acoustic guitar. Fans of all instrumental genres from jazz to classical need to check out Pablo Embon's "While Everybody Sleeps", particularly those with a fondness for 1970's film composers.
Strongest Point(s):
Outstanding production, excellent mix. Incredibly engaging arrangement, stays compelling from top to bottom. Wonderful intro, and great framework by revisiting that section at the end, creates a satisfying symmetry. Fantastic orchestration, great use of color and rhythm to build tension. Drums have a nice dry punchiness to them that's great for this mix. Loved the middle section, perfect contrast while still establishing the theme. Very nice piano solo and bass/glockenspiel answer section. Really liked the way you came out of that as well. The guitar adds a nice bonus flavor in the outro section. Amazing composition and a solid recording overall. Tremendous endeavor, truly an ambitious piece of work, and one that was a joy to review!
Target Audience Appeal: Fans of Cinematic Music, Orchestral Jazz, Film Music, Progressive Jazz, Contemporary Classical, 20th Century Classical
Artist target suggestions: Ennio Morricone, Lalo Schifrin, Henry Mancini, Marvin Hamlisch, Gil Evans, Sun Ra, Stan Kenton, Frank Zappa, Chick Corea, Joe Zawinul, Al Di Meola, Pat Metheny, Jazz Passengers
About The Reviewer: Steven Azami is a multi-instrumentalist with over 25 years of experience in the music industry. Both as a touring/session player and as a producer, his career has spanned nearly every genre, from bluegrass to jazz, from rock to reggae. In addition, his work as a music educator has allowed him to cultivate and foster talent among the next generation of musical explorers
Radio Avenue Review
Song: "A Better Day"
Overall Impression:
Taken from Pablo Embon's upcoming album "Sunrises Every Night", "A Better Day" is quite simply a tour de force in Jazz fusion instrumental writing. Brimming with deep melodic maturity, superb harmonic crafting, and outstanding performances, this is an exquisitely arranged composition that is positively bursting at the seams with both great creativity and subtle nuance. Being a lover of the genre myself, it's always an absolute pleasure to hear artists such as Pablo continuing to push the fusion genre forever forward. "A Better Day" is a beautifully conceived journey into the realms of melodic exploration, one filled with wonder, reflection, and an undeniable sense of purpose. Fantastic!
Strongest Point(s):
Instrumentals by their very nature are one of the hardest forms of music to craft effectively, being able to firmly hold a listeners attention for any considerable amount of time without a lead vocalist or lyrics to attach to is no easy feat, however, Pablo manages to not only do just that, but he does it with such confidence and assuredness in his abilities that it feels effortless. At 5:33, this is by no means a short track, however, from the incredible Jazz flute-led intro to its subtle and delicate playing that leads the track out, the space in-between is filled with an abundance of melodic detail, interesting harmonic twist, and turns, and plenty of compelling interplay between instruments. There is so much on offer that as a listener you can't help but feel captivated throughout, and for any instrumental piece of music to successfully accomplish this is highly commendable. The decision to use melodic vocalizations as opposed to traditional singing is an inspired choice and works incredibly well in this context, helping to add even greater tonal and timbral variation to the track as well as further strengthening the instrumentals melodic depth. Using vocalizations effectively can be a tricky field to navigate, however, Pablo handles this element of the track extremely well, not only do they glide effortlessly over the interesting harmonic progression that lays underneath, but they add a particular soothing nature to the track that is tremendously absorbing.
Area(s) of Improvement:
I found this to be an incredibly strong piece of writing that has clearly been put together with the utmost care and attention to detail. I don't believe any improvements are needed. Excellent work.
Target Audience Appeal:
This is definitely a tune for Jazz fusion lovers, and I think it's safe to say lovers of this style will definitely appreciate all the wonderful things "A Better Day" has to offer.
Artist target suggestions:
Pat Metheny Trio, Chick Corea, Lyle Mays, Mike Stern, Gary Burton, Return To Forever, Tribal Tech, The Brecker Brothers, Dennis Chambers, Herbie Hancock, Snarky Puppy, Bill Laurence
About The Reviewer:
Andre Avanessian is a freelance session musician, composer, and sound engineer based in the U.K. Having studied music production and composition at a degree level, he has taken his passion for all things audio-related to a level that has allowed him to become both a competent musician and performer. Being a self-confessed "Guitar Nerd" Andre has been continually studying the guitar, as well as teaching it, helping students both learn the instrument, develop their songwriting, and how to become proficient in home recording.