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Los Angeles is a hub for talented studio musicians and currently boasts a blossoming singer/songwriter scene. One such L.A.-based artist is Rachel Mazer, a saxophonist and soulful singer/songwriter who fundraised more than $20,000 on Kickstarter in order to make her debut record, How Do We Get By, which is due out in February of 2019. The latest single from the record is a tuneful, saxophone-heavy groover, and it’s premiering here at Paste. It follows previously released single “Is It So Wrong.” Listen to “Open Heart” below.
“Open Heart” is an immediate toe-tap inducer. “Nothing is gonna stop my heart from running free,” Mazer sings before the chorus swells up in a cloud of grooves and beats. “Open Heart” is the kind of song you’d hear in a commercial, then whip out your Shazam app in a flash to find out what it is and who is singing it—Mazer’s voice is commanding, and “Open Heart” is a fresh take on studio jazz and soul music.
Here’s what Mazer had to say about her new tune:
This song is about believing in your own strength and resiliency in the face of adversity and heartbreak. It’s about choosing to let your heart run wild, get it broken, and know that you’ll come back as a stronger person. It’s also about not limiting yourself or your love to one person, or any person if that’s what you want to do. There’s so many ways to exist and be happy; so many ways to experience love and passion. Maybe that means just taking time for yourself to just exist as a person. I’m trying to honor both the movement and stillness in my life.
Though Mazer is only now breaking out as a solo artist, she’s been on the performing circuit for years. The San Francisco native has collaborated and/or recorded with artists like May Erlewine, The Suffers (whom she opened for), Amber Navran and jam-band favorites Vulfpeck, as well as Vulf members Theo Katzman and Joey Dosik, whose new record Inside Voice features Mazer on backing vocals. Another Vulfpeck adjacent, Tyler Duncan, produced and co-wrote “Open Heart” with Mazer. Duncan and Vulfpeck bassist Joe Dart, plus other Vulfpeck collaborators, contributed to the record, which Mazer is dedicating to her late brother, and its cathartic grooves.
Again, you can listen to “Open Heart” below.