Degrees of cool

There’s music that’s great and commercial, and there’s music that may not be for everyone but has coolness stamped all over it. In the case of jazz songstress Esperanza Spalding, the word “cool” doesn’t even come close, while our very own Techy Romantics makes geeky something to aspire for. Great new albums from these two acts.

Esperanza Spalding — Radio Music Society (Heads Up/Universal). Garnering a 2011 Grammy for Best New Artist may have raised the proverbial eyebrows, with people wondering where she came from to romp off with the award. But to discerning music lovers, Esperanza is a known entity, one of the current champions of jazz music. Playing a mean electric bass, and with a voice that’s somewhere in between Cassandra Wilson and India Arie, Esperanza has, in fact, performed here in Manila — some years ago, at the Sofitel. A far more accessible album, yet far from “selling out,” highlights are Crowned & Kissed, Black Gold, her interpretation of Stevie Wonder’s I Can’t Help It, creating lyrics for Wayne Shorter’s Endangered Species, and the anti-war Vague Suspicions. This CD is a must listen! 

Techy Romantics — Escape (Party Bear Records). The Techy Romantics is one of those musical godsends; music you can take long drives with, music that can bring a smile to your face on long, sweltering afternoons, or music to chill with when night descends. Its first CD, Touch, while a tad introspective and moody, gave us an inkling of just how accessible this electro-lounge act’s music was; and it’s good to report that Escape, brings the group further along both musically and lyrically. Escape is the sparkling opener, and the groove just goes on and on. Techy Romantics creates loops within its songs so there’s something we latch on to, then it surprises us with the chorus that serves as a climax or counterpoint to the bred familiarity. Catch Me If I Fall, Tonight We Fly, Brand New and Love Is Forever are my favorite tracks — dreamy, trippy, but in an exuberant way. Here is Philippine music that can genuinely go regional, or even global, if properly marketed.