Simplistic Elegance. Quiet Sophistication. Fashion forward. Always flawless. Those are a few of the phrases used to describe singer/songwriter/poet Gwen Maul.

By ReGINA “G STYL” CRAWFORD
Contributing Writer

Simplistic Elegance. Quiet Sophistication. Fashion forward. Always flawless. Those are a few of the phrases used to describe singer/songwriter/poet Gwen Maul. Her website states that she came on the scene later than most, yet right on time. If you were at Ceviche Bar on New Year’s Day, then you were able to hear her soulful, jazzy voice as she was the feature singer there for the night. You may have also heard her at Uptowne Grille on Sundays throughout the summer of 2010 singing jazz tunes with a live band behind her, or at the Bodega on Coventry on Wednesdays. She has coined her sound “sojapop music” because it has a soulful, jazzy feel with sparkles of pop.

She released her first full length CD titled, ‘Back For The Very First Time’ last year, and when I asked her how she came up with the title, she replied, “I was having a conversation with a friend of mine who said you are coming back for the very first time in terms of me doing live shows.”

I first heard Gwen sing in 2003 at the Robin’s Nest, and always thought that she was a remarkable talent. So I was curious to know, ‘what was the catalyst that prompted her to release a CD last year?’ Prior to following her heart and meeting her dreams in the music arena, she spent sixteen years as a hairstylist and makeup artist. So why walk away from that? According to her website, there was this tug happening. “Everywhere I turned it was there, calling me. I had to answer it,” she stated. However, I wanted to know more, and she responded with, “I knew that I didn’t want to stand behind a chair for 50 years. I said, ‘I have other talents, other gifts, other things that I want to share, in terms of being creative,’ and I wanted to explore those things. At the time I had a salon, and I said it’s music where I want to go next.” It was while she was doing live shows at the Bodega that she decided that she needed something to put in her fans’ hands, and so she made the move to get in the studio and begin recording her CD.

She said that creating and releasing the CD was a different journey, and when asked to elaborate on that statement, she responded, “It was crazy. It was probably one of the most intrusive kind of experiences that I’ve been involved in.” She then went on to say, “It was beautiful, but it was intrusive because it was like peeling back the onion layers. Everything I thought I knew, I didn’t, both musically and personally. Every idea and every facet, I was exposed. I was surrounded by amazing artists. It just exposed so many things about me as person, woman, as a singer, as an artist, as a fan of music.” Before embarking on her musical journey, she decided to do some pre-work, which included losing 100 pounds.

It’s the feedback that she receives from fans of her music that move the singer to continue to share her gift with the public. “It trips me out every time someone says to me, ‘Wow, I felt that,’” she said. “It’s shocking almost because ‘Goodbye’, for instance, was a poem at first, and the situation surrounding ‘Goodbye’ takes more cocktails. And for someone to connect to that and say I felt that, that’s a trip for me because that was a really tripped out time for me. So for somebody else to connect to that, it’s like ‘wow you’ve been through something like that.’ I don’t want anybody to have to go through that, but it’s definitely a motivator,” she said. “It’s definitely what keeps me inspired. It’s what keeps me wanting to continue. It’s an energy thing. I didn’t really realize it so much before as a fan of music, before I became an artist. I didn’t realize that there was this exchange that has to happen. We have to feel it from them just like they have to feel it from us. I understand that on a different level now,” said Gwen.

The CD contains ten tracks all of which were written or co-written by the singer herself. “Goodbye” was the first single released from the album, and was originally a poem that was later put to music by LA-based producer Andrew Gwynn. Another track on the CD, “More,” is delivered in form of a spoken word poem with accompaniment by spoken word artist Q-Nice of Chief Rocka Entertainment. “I have been in love with poetry and words and people speaking their words forever. I wasn’t brave enough to get up and say what I felt, but I would always write erotic poetry. I was not ashamed of it, I just was not convinced that I could get up and do,” she said. “So, “More” is my homage to being at Kamikaze and Spy Bar and Six Street Down Under, and watching poets get up and do erotic poetry. “More” is me recognizing my erotic poetry and celebrating it.”

You can contact Gwen through her website at GwenMaul.com or via Facebook or Twitter. You can also hear tracks from the CD on her website, on YouTube.com, and Reverbnation.com. You can also purchase the CD at iTunes and CDBaby.