TAL Wilkenfeld

Australian musician Tal Wilkenfeld – known for her work with Jeff Beck, Prince and Herbie Hancock – sits down with TG for a run through her new album and an insight into her incredible journey so far...

- Amit Sharma

“It sounded like fun!” laughs Tal Wilkenfeld on relocating from Australia to America for a career in music at just 16 years old. “Every kid that age just wants to go and explore and feel free. Well, maybe some don’t, but I certainly did...”

It’s a decision that ultimately paid off. After switching from guitar to bass while at the Los Angeles College For Music, she relocated to New York and made a name for herself in its ever-thriving jazz scene, leading to an invitation to jam with The Allman Brothers at Manhattan’s Beacon Theater. After recording her instrumental fusion debut, Transformation, she would go on to join the bands of virtuoso masters like Jeff Beck, Chick Corea and Herbie Hancock, as well as recording with Prince, Toto, and Jackson Browne.

But it’s this year’s long-awaited follow-up record Love Remains that best captures Wilkenfeld’s musicality in full, dazzling glory – blending that keen ear for melody with her soulful voice in a collection of atmospheric rock songs, ranging from the downtuned rumblings of Corner Painter to the ethereal echoes of Under The Sun. Having played both guitar and bass on the album, talking to TG inside the London headquarters of her new major label home, she gives us a closer look at the sounds and situations that got her here...

When did you realise this would be a heavier album compared to your debut, sharing more in common with rock luminaries like Jimi Hendrix and Jeff Buckley than the jazz fusion world?