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Heritage by Silvestre Martinez
Heritage by Silvestre Martinez, a Review by Raul Amador
When the Spaniards (and other Europeans) came to the “ New World” (the Americas), they brought African slaves with them. The terrible reality of slavery in itself being inexcusable, there is one area where we have benefitted immensely. The cultural and musical influence that these Africans brought with them has greatly enriched our own contemporary music and culture; I want to focus on the Afro-Antillean or Afro-Cuban music genre. “Heritage” by percussionist Silvestre Martinez is a prime example of this legacy being alive and well! I find it interesting that this musical style reached to the west coast of Mexico (Oxaca) from where Silvestre hails Strong African elements such as percussion, vocal patterns and the structure of each piece lay down the foundation for the rest of the instruments to build upon. Articulate woodwinds and intricate keyboard work ads color to most of the CD. Featured players include Pianists Hector Martignon & Coto Pincheira, Antonio Sanchez, Alan Hall, and Colin Douglas on drums, Sheldon Brown and Eric Crystal on Sax, Erik Jekabson on trumpet. Solid Bass playing from Sam Bevan completes the complex, syncopated rhythms. The key here is the percussive “machine” (Major and minor percussion) that gives us the distinctive Latin Jazz/ world music experience.
As is many times the case, I would have liked to have heard more of the Bass in these tunes (volume and tone) but I also grasp that the “space” between the notes is critical to the overall effect. Maybe someday we can convince the sound engineers to allow the bass to shine through when soloing. I really want to hear what they have to say!
The CD kicks off with a bang with “Ishe Olu Wah”. The lone conga opens and the momentum builds as the voices and instruments join in. Classic afro-cuban time signature and syncopation blend so that you can imagine that you have a foot on two continents spanning the Atlantic. Very Juicy!
“Reaction” starts up with the lone bass and the very tight percussion sets the tempos as we travel along with the sax driven melody. Here is where contemporary Jazz meets Latin Jazz.
“El Feo “ and “Sabra Dios” showcase Silvestre’s vocal soloist talents. Both pieces are very unique in style and delivery. The first reminds me of a Mexican folksong where the second is a nice “Bolero” to dance the night away to.
“Rumba Puerto Angel” pays homage to Silvestre’s hometown on the Mexican coast. This song is a very nice way to pay tribute to a place that he remembers fondly and misses. This piece paints a musical picture of his past. “Nunca te olvidare” means “I will never forget you (Just thought you would like to know). This tune is where the percussion has a chance to show its stuff! Impressive!
Latin Jazz/ World music your thing? Check this one out!
Heritage by Silvestre Martinez available at Amazon.com and CD Baby.
www.myspace.com/silvestremartinezmusic
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Photo: Self-portrait by Melissa Auf Der Maur
Melissa Auf Der Maur is a Canadian bassist who played with Tinker, Hole, and The Smashing Pumpkins. She released her own work and is a photographer with photos published in Nylon, Bust, and National Geographic. She released her ‘90s Rock Memoir “Even The Good Girls Will Cry” on 17 March 2026.
KB: Did you always want to be a singer-musician growing up?
I’ve played music my whole life. In school, I played trumpet and sang in a children’s choir, so music was always within me. My mother was the first female disc jockey on the Montreal airwaves; her record collection played a huge role in my inspiration and love of music.
KB: When did you start playing bass, and why this instrument?
When I was 19, the early 90s music explosion began to percolate in tiny clubs around the world. I was lucky to be a ticket girl at Montreal’s underground music club. In one year, I saw Hole, Sonic Youth, Smashing Pumpkins, White Zombie, and The Breeders – all had female bass players. That’s when the seed was planted. By the age of 22, I was the bass player of Hole.
KB: Which brands of basses have you used in your career, and which one are you using now?
The first bass that I learned on was a vintage Squier Precision. Hole was sponsored by Fender guitars, so I upgraded to Fender Custom Shop Precisions. That is all I play, but I have a cool vintage 8-string Greco that I use on recordings to thicken up guitar parts.
KB: What equipment do you use or have you used with your basses?
Ampeg SVT amps and cabinets, a couple of Sans-Amp pedals, and that is it.
KB: How did you become a member of Hole, and what is your fondest memory of that time?
Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins was helping scout a replacement for (RIP) Kristen Pfaff, Hole’s bass player. My band, Tinker, opened for them on the Siamese Dream tour, so Billy had seen me play and could vouch for me. Courtney trusted her talented friend, and that was it. I initially said “no thank you” due to my commitment to my photographic studies and the drama and chaos surrounding the band during the “Live Through This” album release. Courtney took it as a good sign that I said no, so convinced me to reconsider, and soon after, I accepted their invitation, in the name of helping put females in the male-dominated landscape of rock music. My fondest memory is every show we played as a mostly female band, symbolizing what a woman could do in a rock band. Every show had a purpose: get more women to play music.
KB: You are a photographer as well. What makes a great picture? Do you shoot in color or b/w?
I started shooting photographs at age 15. Initially only shot black & white and worked in the art school darkroom. In university, I took a color photography course, and shifted mostly and forever to that, because it was easier to process film on the road when I joined a rock band. I experimented with many cameras, point and shoots, manual, polaroids, medium format, and vintage finds. The trick to a good photograph is to shoot many and all the time – the magic is in the edit and selection process.
KB: Are there artists you would love to collaborate with or wish you had?
??I’ve been lucky to collaborate with some of my favorite musicians in my career. I would still love to collaborate with a new generation heavy electronic artist on an analog bass, heavy electronic drums, and synths collaboration project. Take me out of my usual zone, merging the past and future: my love of 80s dark new wave and new artists exploring that genre. It was very futuristic back then, and we are now, after all, living in the future. I am in the mood to play bass to heavy beats I want to dance to.
KB: What are your 7 favorite bass lines in music across all genres? And why these 7?
“Mountain Song” – Jane’s Addiction (love a rambling, rolling bass line – feels like the ocean waves)
“Black Top – Helmet” (was the first bass line I taught myself)
“Gold Dust Woman” – Hole from “The Crow 2” Soundtrack (it was my first bass line contribution to the band)
“Get Ready” – The Temptations (Motown just feels so good, because of the bass)
“Lucretia My Reflection” – Sisters of Mercy (makes me want to hit the dance floor and play bass simultaneously)
“Be My Druidess” – Type O Negative (full chord bass playing at its best by iconic, demonic, Peter Steele, RIP)
“Romantic Rights” – Death from Above (1979 – unique distorted overdriven tone, combined dance rhythm and melodic intelligence, all in one shot – also! Shout out to a bass & drum only band, which is awesome, and we should have more of, but the bass player needs to be a killer to fill that role.
KB: What are you currently up to?
Releasing my ‘90s Rock Memoir “EVEN THE GOOD GIRLS WILL CRY”. Visceral healing process, it was to get it out of me and write it, but I suspect the real magic will begin by putting it into the world and reflecting with others on what the magic of the ‘90s was all about. Powerful music decade that carried us into what is now a brave new world of digital corporate weirdness – may the past shed a light on our future. That’s my hope for this book release and tour.
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