Singer-songwriter Tia Brazda burst onto the jazz scene ten years ago, with a debut EP which topped the Canadian iTunes jazz charts. Her full-length debut Bandshell performed equally well in 2015, with Jazz FM 91 ranking it in the top five Canadian jazz releases of that year. By this time the Vancouver native had already made a name for herself touring the clubs of Europe, followed swiftly by prominent performances at international festivals in Montreal, Rochester, and Montreux, as well as Spain and Italy.
All of this is to say that Brazda has well and truly made it as a contemporary singer of classic swing jazz. This is due perhaps in part to the clean, fresh, modern sound she imparts, while retaining the soul of these old styles. New disc When I Get Low is another great example of this, eschewing the stripped-back gypsy sound favored by many hep young combos in favor of full arrangements stuffed with electric guitar, multi-tracked voices, and even smatterings of tasteful synth (see “Lullaby of the Leaves,” for example).
It’s an approach reminiscent of Lana Del Rey or Amy Winehouse, with touches of rockabilly and soul, but with much more than the whiff of retro glamor those performers employed. Her treatment of these eight classic tracks from the likes of Oscar Hammerstein, Charlie Chaplin, and Marion Sunshine—plus one original very much in the same vein—makes them sound f
