Album Review: Secret Evil by Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas

Making an album is no easy task, especially when it’s your debut full-length and expectations are high, to put it mildly. But taking that pressure to craft a separate world entirely is remarkable, and that is precisely what takes shape in Secret Evil. Jessica Hernandez and the Deltas’ first LP is a fully-realized realm, a dimension glimpsed in the group’s series of preceding EPs.

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It might be said that the best way to experience Jessica Hernandez’ Secret Evil is as a listener who has never heard the striking, raven-haired songstress’ music before, as it’s almost certain to take those people completely by surprise. Her voice instantly captivates, radiating both power and sophistication on 11 tracks that vary wildly in tone. To those who have followed the Detroit native a little longer, the tonal shifts are a bit more understandable—there is some recycled content here, and a reworked song being given a glossy new coat of studio paint.

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Two years is a long time to sit on a completely finished album, but that's the fate Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas experienced in getting Secret Evil onto shelves. Produced by Latin Grammy winner Milo Froideval, it was recorded for Blue Note, but indefinitely shelved after the label's acquisition by Universal. Hernandez got her record back and signed with Richard Gottehrer's Instant Records.

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Jessica Hernandez & the DeltasSecret Evil(Instant)3 1/2 out of 5 stars It helps to know that Jessica Hernandez and her band hail from Detroit. Any city responsible for Mitch Ryder, Iggy Pop, Jack White, the Detroit Cobras and of course Motown is a fertile breeding ground for the soulful pop and rock this group churns out like it was in their DNA. Add that to recording for a label owned by the legendary Richard Gottehrer.

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