100 Bands in 100 Days Presented by Verity Credit Union — Day 81: Ambience
Ladies and gentlemen, and all local music enthusiasts, welcome back to the fourth annual outing of our year-end daily local music spotlight, 100 Bands in 100 Days, where every day until December 31st, we’ll be showcasing a new band or artist on the cutting edge of the Northwest, presented by Verity Credit Union. Make sure to check the #100Bands100Days hashtag at Twitter daily to stay on top of all the bands featured, and make sure to follow Verity on Twitter and NW_Music_Scene as well. Some days the featured act could be an established and locally-adored Northwest-based musician and other times they could be a band with a small following that just hasn’t had their deserved time in the sun yet. Either way, we’re fairly confident you can come away from this daily segment with plenty of new favorites. Today we’re looking at a Northwest jazz group that hearkens back to various greats of jazz’s past, Ambience.
One of Seattle’s premier jazz groups, Ambience isn’t just your typical Muzak-esque lounge jazz outfit. Featuring award-winning vocalist Leah Natale at the forefront of their music, Ambience is known for their tasteful and nostalgic approach to the golden age of jazz music, but with a warm, smooth instrumental palette. Their distinct, difficult-to-replicate sound intimately melts resonant, jazz guitar together with light, elegant woodwind instrumentation, and influences from traditional Brazilian and Latin music genres for a finished sound that paints a beautiful picture with each song that’ll leave a lasting impact on listeners.
Though the band’s music contains a wealth of stunning instruments and alluring melodies, it’s Leah Natale’s sultry, silky singing that ultimately sells Ambience and pushes the band over the edge. Listening to the way her vocals pair so well with the surrounding instrumentation and give the music more lusciousness than any instrument you could throw into the mix, it’s no wonder Natale took home first place at the Seattle/Kobe Female Jazz Vocalist competition back in 2013, and received a nomination for 2014 Northwest Vocalist of the Year by Earshot Jazz. Ambience has become a popular live act in the local jazz circles, with their live performances capturing the finesse and mysticism of their music to a tee.
(You can listen to Ambience below via Spotify and YouTube; make sure to keep up with Ambience via Facebook and their official website.)
A huge shoutout to Verity Credit Union for doing so much for the music community and for being such a great partner.
