Maria Elena Silva

In November of 2019, Maria Elena Silva made the trek from Wichita, Kansas to Chris Schlarb’s studio, BIG EGO, in Long Beach, California. Along for the ride was drummer and collaborator, Scott Dean Taylor. The two had developed a unique musical language over the course of two previous albums and many live performances. A creative dream team of Los Angeles musicians was summoned and within three days a gem of a record was in the can. Arrangements came together fast in the studio and later Schlarb’s mix would provide the final word on orchestration.

Silva’s guitar provides a concise, elegant skeleton expertly fleshed out by the band. It goes without saying all are killer instrumentalists, many of them LA creative music lynchpins. What’s most striking though is the ensemble playing and arrangement: Alex Sadnik and Brian Walsh’s woodwinds in magical counterpoint, Jeff Parker and Schlarb’s guitar parts perfectly complementing Silva’s, Philip Glenn’s organ entrances psychically setting up a new section, Anthony Shadduck’s contrabass grounding us when the band’s at its most impressionistic ("Spill", "Quemado", "De Noche"), flawlessly placed percussion textures by Danny Frankel. If we’re talking jazz, there’s a lot in common with the polyphony and collective improvising of 1920’s New Orleans. It’s about composite sound, not ripping solos. If we’re talking ethos, it’s about the group and not the individual. - Ava Mendoza, Brooklyn, New York