Lucila Al Mar: Nothing Is Forever
Key Tracks: Love and Let Go, Protest, 24, Butterfly
Duality is a tough cookie. Here one moment, gone the next; one person one moment, another person the next; love ‘n hate…Lucila Al Mar’s debut album “Nothing Is Forever” is an extended meditation on the nature of duality. It is a well-produced, well arranged but mostly, a superbly performed statement by this songstress; evocative of Erykah Badu, Os Mutantes, Arthur Lee and Santana at their finest. Lucila, who bounces back, forth and back again from English to Spanish, peppers her songs with images of broken hearts, betrayals, emergence and surrender; as though the album is her platform for going thru the stages of grief.
The rocker “Protest” tackles its subject of abandonment with a heavy pre-punk arrangement reminiscent of late 60’s Love. Al Mar’s voice is strong and expressive and manages to circumvent her influences while at the same time acknowledging them. The most impressive track on this release is “24” which once again adopts garage rock influences, sexifying them with a honeycombs worth of latin rhythm and some really tricky yet welcome time changes and the coyingly delivered line “I’m an insider, outsiiiiiiduhhhrrrr”…kiss of perfection delivered and please keep the change:
The final track, “Mujer Del Aqua” is mostly sung in Spanish and is delivered with a fantastically danceable beat and, considering the music that came before it, some really pleasantly unexpected keyboard arrangements:
https://lucilaalmar.com/track/1226293/mujer-del-aqua?autostart=true
One does not want to rip on what is not to be ripped on, and the album as it stands is quite fetching. This writer wonders, however, what will come of Ms. Al Mar’s duality resolution. What kind of music will she make next? Her delivery is sultry and strong enough to carry these weighty tunes, but when this butterfly emerges as beautiful as she truly is, I hope to hear what her meditations on love and fidelity will sound like. For certain, I will be listening.
You can catch Lucila at Irene’s Pub on May 15th with Cynthia Tauro & Julie Corrigan for the monthly Girls to the Front Songwriters Circle, starting at 8pm, PWYC!
Until then, head over to the talented artist’s site and buy yourself a copy of this amazing album (name your own price!), and give her a follow on Facebook to keep up-to-date with her upcoming shows and news. Trust me, you’ll be happy you did.
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