Something Else Blog Review
Martin Urbach: Free Will
by S. Victor Aaron
Do you know any really good Jewish drummers from Bolivia? Well, you do now; his name is Martin (pronounced mar-TEEN) Urbach.
Urbach resides in Astoria, NY these days, but he once called New Orleans his home, where he got his bachelors in jazz performance from UNO, until Katrina drove him out. Even though he’s firmly settled up East with also a masters in jazz performance from Manhattan School of Music, his heart is still in New Orleans.
Free Will marks his first time out as a leader, with all nine songs his own. The music is what I call jazz with some fusion tendencies without quite being fusion, if that makes any sense. A good point of reference is Gary Burton, with the Burton connection made stronger by the presence of vibe player Tim Collins, late of Sam Barsh’s (I Forgot What you Taught Me).
Also accompanied by Brian Seeger (guitars), Pascal Niggenkemper (stand-up bass) and Scott Bourgeois (saxes), Free Will is full of interesting melodies that range from graceful to driving. The band avoids overplaying Urbach’s songs and Urbach himself mostly stays behind the front line to propel the other players, although he gets in a couple of powerful solos. The softer, folk-like pieces like “Southern Damsels” and “Velvet Swamp” are counterbalanced by some unrestrained, nearly avant garde jazz found in “I Broke The Jazz” and “Free Will.”
To find out more about this up-and-comer, visit his website. Urbach did well his first time out and is worth keeping tabs on for what he does next.