Music Reviews
Soundspecies - Soundspecies
Burnt ProgressThe debut of the Keen brothers, Barnaby & Nathaniel aka Sounspecies is filled with soulful down-tempo grooves and funky hip-hop beats drenched in a soulful vibe that will have you wondering where have these guys been all along. The brothers, with a little help from their friends skillfully combine electronic grooves with live instrumentation and the result is a well crafted and deeply satisfying debut. The disc starts out with “Stars Wars”, an instrumental jam with a thumping bass line. That is followed up with “Something new”, a blissful and melodic gem. The lush arrangements plus the mesmerizing voice of Emilia Martensson takes this track on a musical voyage that his truly devine. “CDR People” is a funky dose of hip hop that features the Foreign Beggars. “Journeyman” is an ambient jazzy number that is enhanced by Ben Hadwen’s playing on flute and sax. The disc wraps up with the soothing “Waiting for the Sun to come up”, which features Barnaby and Deborah Jordan on vocals. Soundspecies spent many years in London cultivating their sound. This debut proves that they have learned their lessons well. This is an exceptional record that you shouldn’t miss.
PermalinkReg Dancy, 06/09
Soweto Kinch - A Life In The Day of B19: Tales Of The Tower Block
DuneMusic from high above the streets, from where the inspiration came, for this first of a two parter. This is jazz at its most adventurous best, a story narrated by Moira Stewart with the characters MCing over jazz blowing and hip hop flowing while musical boundaries open up. This is Birmingham from a high rise block, take a listen to the dialogue between the aspiring MC and the Job Centre worker, on the button . Love it.
Graham Radley, 11/06
Space Invadas - Soul:Fi
BBE RecordsIf you haven’t had this conversation yet, you will one day explain to your kids or somebody else’s kid that music didn’t always require a drum machine to make beats, or a sample wasn’t necessary to capture the right hook or feature the right voice. The days of lo-fi recordings are from another place in time but when played today you can’t help but get lifted by the raw soul seeping into your veins. It has been a daunting task to bridge the gap from the old to the new but the Space Invadas are more than capable of filling that role. Producer Ashley Anderson, aka Katalyst and vocalist Steve Spacek are on a mission to bring you soul music in its purest form and suffice to say, you’ll gladly come along for the ride. Their debut, “Soul Fi” starts out by transporting you to a time when soul music was the norm and not the exception. Upon arrival, you’re treated to “Imaginist”, a funky track that merges a fierce rhythm guitar groove and lush strings that serves as the canvas for Spacek’s falsetto voice. “Super Sweet” is another uptempo foot stomper that finds vocalists Fantine and Spacek playfully flirting with one another over a wicked bass groove and drum beat. “Ready Or Not” is an midtempo gem that utilizes The Delfonics sample of the same name that was so successful for the Fugees mid nineties hit. Spacek sprinkles his voice over the rhythm section and transforms the track into his own. On “Way We Feel”, The Space Invadas bring the pace down to a slow burn and create a sultry slow jam reminiscent of Love Unlimited classics. Indeed “Soul Fi” has all the ingredients of a soul classic and would serve as the antidote for any party in need of a funk injection. This is certainly one of the best early full length releases of 2011.
Reg Dancy, 03/11
Spam Allstars - Introducing Spam Allstars
IntroducingThis CD takes material from the Miami bands’ earlier CDs and introduces them to a hopefully wider audience. The band state their mission is to ‘blend improvisational electronic elements and turntables with Latin, funk, hip-hop and dub to create a sound that is unique – an electronic descarga.’ Excellent musicians combined with a love of playing live give them a real chilled buzz. Very much one to discover, if you’ve not already of course.
Graham Radley, 09/08
Spanky Wilson & The Quantic Soul Orchestra - I
Tru Thoughts RecordingsA few years ago Will Holland went in search of Spanky Wilson to feature on his 2001 album "Mishaps Happening", and of course the anthem "Don't joke with a hungry man" bowled everyone over. I would have loved to have seen his face when she agreed to record an album with him: he must have been smiling for weeks. The Quantic Soul Orchestra side of Will's productions is funk at its best and with Spanky on vocals it was never ever going to fail. The tracks are not obvious and do take a little getting used to but to me it's another classic Quantic collaboration.
Simon Harrison, 10/06
Speeka - Bonfire
Wah Wah 45sMatt Smooth and Rob Mac are back with their second album under the alias Speeka and it makes me wonder how they have time with all the other projects they've got under their belt. With the guys known more for their hip-hop roots than their jazz or funk, they take all those influences and turn them into a wonderful folk style album. This is a beautiful album that will have you wanting more after each play. My copy arrived in the middle of the postal strike, so I was able to give this album the attention it deserves. One of the catchiest tracks I've heard this year is "Better Inside", which has all the elements of a hit, if only the nation wasn't so obsessed with reality TV music shows. With a good balance of instrumentals and vocal productions, this will more than keep you happy through the dark winter months. Yet another excellent release from Wah Wah 45s.
Simon Harrison, 01/08
Spirit Catcher - Night Vision
2020 Vision RecordingsAfter several 12" releases under their belt the Belgian duo, Jean Vanesse and Thomas Sohet, aka Spirit Catcher deliver their debut album for the Leeds based 2020 Vision Recordings. It's packed full of quality electro-boogie house and includes both 'Sweet Deal' and 'Time Emulator' from the recent single. To these ears though the standouts are the mid-tempo grooves 'Space Crash' and 'Motown Spring', the latter featuring a rock steady bass line, atmospheric keys and dreamy filtered harmonies. Trust me this is the bomb!
Andy Allen, 02/07
Spoonface - Living On The Venus Express
FaadaSpoonface’s velvet tonsils have graced numerous productions over the past few years from house and broken-beat to R&B. His debut album follows a slightly different path though, focusing largely on acoustic folk orientated material. Of which ‘We Don’t Need To’, with its’ Spanish guitar flurries works particularly well but also check the mellow digital soul cut ‘It’s All Love’.
Andy Allen, 03/08
Stee Downes - All In A Day
Sonar KollektivDublin born Stee Downes debut “All In A Day” is an amalgamation of harmonious 60’s pop, soul and funk. After ten years as a dj and performing live shows with the likes of Amp Fiddler and Bugz In The Attic, Stee hooked up with friend and musical confidant Ishfaq to work on his record. The result is a laidback feel good record that is warm and melodic. Highlights include “Asunder”, a mid tempo tune with simple lyrics to sing along to (“You could fill my dreams with Asunder”). “What’s Wrong with Groovin’” employs the same format with the exception of the samba like breaks filled with cool percussion work and strings. “What I’m Feeling” might be my favorite, a gorgeous bossa nova beat with slick guitar licks and funky horns. Stee Downes may not be known to most but “All In A Day” will make everyone get familiar with him. His voice isn’t overpowering but he doesn’t try to do what he can’t do. What he can do is create quality music with warm harmonic arrangements. This is an impressive debut by Stee Downes and is certainly worth checking out.
Reg Dancy, 10/08
Stephanie McKay - Tell It Like It Is
Muthas of InventionFinally! We’ve been waiting over a year since the original release date but the sophomore project by Stephanie McKay is here. “Tell It Like It Is” is gritty no holds barred soul with a 70’s vibe. Not to mention the passion and intensity that we heard on her debut “McKay” in 2003. The disc starts with the title track in which she laments on the problems that surrounds her community in particular and in the world in general. She advises a young girl to avoid some of the mistakes she made at her age. The wah wah guitar is a perfect compliment to this funky track. “Jackson Avenue” is the perfect summertime jam.. It evokes images of kids playing in the street and relying on the fire hydrants sprouting cool water for relief from the heat. The compostion has a classic Holland-Dozier-Holland sound and would’ve fit in perfectly in the Motown catalogue sans the Eric B & Rakim samples that add spice to the track. “Where Did Our Love Go” is a sweet ballad that features soul crooner Anthony Hamilton. With just twelve tracks, this disc sticks to the strong material and lays off the filler. One year after the EP of the same name, Stephanie McKay delivers with a disc full of soulful tasty treats that touches on social issues and everyday life experiences. This certainly emerges as one of best records of 2008 and an much needed voice to breathe life into soul music.
Reg Dancy, 08/08