Gretchen Parlato in Berlin

Gretchen Parlato, whose new album “The Wise Ones” will be released on Edition Records on September 11th, was in town yesterday for the first ever Zig Zag Jazz Festival. Located on top of the Gasometer in a cozy little room, she actually played a lot of the new songs (it’s going to be a five-paw review; we’ve been lucky enough to have listened to it already), including what I think is one of the best tunes I’ve heard so far this year. It was really something to hear “Capricorn”, the first single and album opener, in a more stripped-down version. She was backed by pianist and keyboardist Jacob Mann, bassist Alan Hampton, who co-produced the album and wrote several tracks, and drummer Mark Guiliana, who is also her husband and their son peeking from behind the drum set.

I was really impressed with her version of Alan’s “It’s You”, which he recorded for his 2014 album “Origami For The Fire”. That particular piece suits her incredibly well. Mark’s drum work was so imaginative and almost positively insane on Stevie Wonder’s “If It’s Magic”, which was treated with a fantastic arrangement. Another highlight last night (and on the album too) is the dreamy, elegantly floating title track “The Wise Ones”. Her phrasing and rhythmic instinct, both highly unique and somehow unapologetic, came perfectly to the fore on the soulful “Landslide”, the track she used as the opener of her show. Alan handled bass and vocals suavely and Jacob changed from acoustic to electric several times, always with much aplomb and some freaking solos, like on Herbie Hancock’s “Butterfly”, which was just simply amazing (she recorded it for her 2009 album “In A Dream”). We were also treated to the other two singles which have already been released prior to the album’s drop: the excellent heavy groover “Rainbow” and the bubbling “Never Come Down”. Gretchen will be back in Europe in October. Stay tuned!