Music
RobinElla
Solace for the Lonely (Dualtone)Playing Feb. 22 at Mercy Lounge
RobinElla Contreras dropped more than a band name on her way to making Solace for the Lonely, her fourth album and first since leaving Columbia Records for the Nashville independent Dualtone. After seven years as RobinElla & the CC Stringband, Contreras’ newly stripped-down moniker is more than a marketing ploy; it’s a sign of rebirth. Although she still works with her multi-instrumentalist husband, Cruz Contreras (the CC of her string band), nearly everything about her sound and direction is different—and better.
The CC Stringband initially built their reputation in Knoxville as an entertaining acoustic act that drew on swing, bluegrass, cabaret and uptown blues in a retro style reminiscent of Maria Muldaur during her jug-band days or the Squirrel Nut Zippers at their most down-home. The group’s material had a willfully eclectic cast, mixing Duke Ellington, George Jones and Nanci Griffith with traditional gospel and mountain tunes. It all was carried by RobinElla’s guileless stage presence and her voice, which managed to be both chirpy and sultry, like a hippie Dolly Parton.
But the group strained to capture on record the appeal of their live show; what came across as charming onstage seemed precious and contrived on disc, and veteran pop producer Russ Titleman left the sound too barren and antique to breathe life into it.
The talent was obviously there, and a few cuts worked well, such as Hugh Prestwood’s “Always the Same, Always the Best” and a spare folk take of the country gospel standard “Hold to God’s Unchanging Hand.” But their weaknesses—thin, predictable arrangements and cute, mannered vocals—were glaring when the band took on oft-recorded classics like “Solitude” and “Tennessee Saturday Night.” Still, Columbia promoted the band as if it had the Southern answer to Norah Jones. Despite the hard push, including a slot opening a tour for Bob Dylan, the band didn’t gain much of a national presence; in the end, they splintered from too much pressure and disappointment.
Perhaps motivated by the album’s failure, or maybe just showing artistic growth, Solace for the Lonely isn’t a follow-up to the group’s self-titled Columbia album; it’s a complete departure. Produced by Nashville’s Doug Lancio, who has worked with Patty Griffin and Nanci Griffith, Solace for the Lonely is modern—progressive, even—where the singer’s previous projects had been retro.
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Just as importantly, RobinElla is now writing most of her material—the album’s only disappointment is a toss-off of Melanie’s “Brand New Key,” an obvious choice considering the similarities in the two women’s voices and personas. Still coyly charming, RobinElla nonetheless reveals more maturity and more of who she is on Solace. Sensual where she once was cute, smart where she once was sly, deep where she once was glib, she comes into her own on the new record and lives up to the premature hype of three years ago.
RobinElla’s writing merges the spiritual with the carnal, a familiar juxtaposition that she enlivens with a fresh perspective. She opens with “Break It Down Baby,” a sultry come-on in which she reassures a worried partner that there’s feeling and commitment behind the sex. This track bumps into the title song, a cool-blue vamp about how RobinElla’s faith gives her hope and sustenance, especially when times get tough. She envisions her funeral in “Press On” and makes it sound like a beautiful statement of inner strength, while in “Come Back My Way” she sends a message to a man who jilted her, saying that she’ll always be his friend, should he ever want to contact her.
RobinElla’s lyrics and voice are only part of what distinguishes her new work. Where the previous album sounded tentative, the new one shows confidence, with her backing group—a mix of longtime band members and session pros—working effortlessly in a variety of grooves. Some tracks use electronic loops and synthesizers to create a warm, propulsive mood. “Little Boy” uses a funk organ and wah-wah guitar for a joyous celebration that sounds like a lost track from Stevie Wonder’s Fulfillingness’ First Finale, with RobinElla giving her best vocal performance, a slurring, slinky workout that easily slides from falsetto yelps to earthy growls.
Just as good is “Oh So Sexy,” a playful depiction of a nightclub flirtation between strangers, which rides a sweetly propulsive groove of acoustic guitars, percussion, fiddle and steel guitar reminiscent of Paul Simon’s “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard.” Even when RobinElla goes spare and rootsy, as on the beautiful ballad “Teardrops,” the sound is full and self-assured, with Lancio providing a soft bed of reverberating electric bass and brushed drums while the mandolin and guitar offer shimmering accents on top. Elsewhere, “All Is Given” and the ragtime “I Fall in Love as Much as I Can” prove RobinElla is now capable of tackling the jazz arrangements that were beyond her grasp on previous albums.
Despite some of the old-school references, Solace for the Lonely brings RobinElla into the current century. From the odd organ bleats and tinkling of xylophone in “All Is Given” to the hushed loops in “Break It Down Baby,” these are songs that could be programmed next to those of Beth Orton or Sufjan Stevens.
In the end, Solace for the Lonely addresses age-old music industry concepts like artist development and the matching of an artist with the right producer. Thankfully, RobinElla’s journey didn’t stop with one misguided major-label effort and wound up here instead.