Tal Wilkenfeld — Cassette

Intro

Tal Wilkenfeld’s music exists at the intersection of high-level technical proficiency and raw, singer-songwriter vulnerability. Her early work is a masterclass in jazz fusion, characterized by intricate odd meters and a bass tone that is both punchy and singing. It feels like a conversation between masters, where every note is intentional and every rhythmic shift is a shared secret between the instruments.

What truly sets her apart is the pivot from instrumental prodigy to a formidable vocal artist. She treats her voice with the same precision as her bass, using a breathy, intimate delivery to ground complex, riff-heavy arrangements. The production often favors an organic, analog warmth that makes the music feel like it’s being performed in a small, wood-paneled room just for you.

Start with 'Love Remains' if you want to hear her evolution into a deep, introspective songwriter, or dive into 'Transformation' to witness the pure, unadulterated fusion energy that made her a legend among the world's greatest musicians before she was twenty-one.

Tal Wilkenfeld (born 2 December 1986) is an Australian bassist, singer and songwriter. She has performed with artists including Chick Corea, Jeff Beck, Prince, Incubus, Eric Clapton, Herbie Hancock, Toto, and Mick Jagger. In 2008, Wilkenfeld was voted "The Year's Most Exciting New Player" in a Bass Player magazine readers' choice poll. In 2013, Wilkenfeld was awarded the Bass Player magazine's "Young Gun Award". Wilkenfeld is a bandleader of her own bands in which she sings, plays bass, and plays guitar. In earlier work, she was backed by musicians such as Wayne Krantz and Vinnie Colaiuta. She opened for the Who on the North American leg of The Who Hits 50! tour in 2016. In 2016, she released a single entitled "Corner Painter" featuring Blake Mills and Benmont Tench. Also in 2016, Rolling Stone said that Wilkenfeld was "working on new music that sees her evolving from an instrumental prodigy into a formidable singer-songwriter." On 15 March 2019, Wilkenfeld released her vocal debut album Love Remains, which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Heatseeker charts on the first week of its release. Love Remains has been highly praised by the press and was featured in Rolling Stone, Relix, Paste, Billboard, and Forbes. Rolling Stone described her vocal debut as having "ten dense, riff-heavy tracks with brazen, introspective lyrics—prove her songwriting abilities." Wilkenfeld has also been a guest on popular podcasts, including WTF with Marc Maron, Lex Fridman and Bill Burr's Monday Morning Podcast. Wilkenfeld has recorded on projects with Ringo Starr, Brian Wilson, Toto, Todd Rundgren, Macy Gray, Dr. John, Trevor Rabin, Jackson Browne, Joe Walsh, Rod Stewart, John Mayer, Sting, Ben Harper, David Gilmour, Pharrell, Buddy Guy, Billy Gibbons, Wayne Shorter, Prince, Susan Tedeschi, Hans Zimmer and Carlos Santana.

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Our Catalog2 Albums · 2007 · 2019