Browsing Tag

Electronic Soul Pop

Nikki Taylor Vibe gets deep and soulful on ‘Understated’

Posted on 24 June 2021

Nikki Taylor Vibe is a Long Island, New York, native with a background of stylistic crossover between hip hop, RnB, and Indie-pop. Her first single, ‘Wasted’, from her debut EP ‘Siren’ dropped in January last year, and since then she’s been named Power 98.5 Radio’s Breakout Artist of 2020, collaborating with Royce Da 59 and Young Ra on the single ‘Nother Level’.

Now, ‘Understated’ is Vibe’s new single, and understated it certainly is, classy, sultry, smooth, and sexy, pulled back, mellow and chilled all with Vibe’s laid-back vocal delivery overlaying old school 808 beats and deep soulful groove. It’s a killer track, showcasing without being showy, flash without being brash. It really IS understated.

Check out ‘Understated’ on Spotify; check out Nikki Taylor Vibe on Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Alex Holmes

In Reverse – Ready: Soul-Driven Indie Synthpop

Posted on 30 January 2021

If you could imagine what it would sound like if the 1975 and the Midnight met in the middle while incorporating elements of soul pop in the style of Maroon 5, you’ll get an idea of the stylistic melding which took place for In Reverse to create their latest single ‘Ready’.

The Oslo-based Norwegian Pop band’s approach to Pop may break free of the usual constraints which Pop artists find themselves bound by when they’re writing tracks with commercial potential in mind, but their sound is all the more immersive for it.

The unpredictably progressive electronic pop hit blends elements of contemporary synthpop with hints of indie jangle pop which are palpable in the guitar progressions, yet, Ready still unravels without experimentalism being the main focus. It’s a track which makes sure that the sentiment it was inspired by is harmonically hammered home. It may leave you with a little bit of procrastination guilt, but if any track is going to leave you psyched to attack everything you have been deliberating on, it’s this one.

The ‘Rona may have hindered In Reverse’s plans of aural domination, but on the basis of Ready, we can’t imagine they’ll let anything as small as a global pandemic get in the way.

Ready was released on January 15^th, you can check it out for yourselves by heading over to In Reverse’s official website.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

comeover – Reflect: Spikily Soulful Alt Electro Pop

Posted on 15 January 2021

‘Reflect’ is the latest entrancingly deep single from up and coming artist, comeover, which proves the necessity of vulnerability in music and affirms that it is raw unfiltered honesty which creates a connectable release; it scarcely matters who is behind the mixing desk.

Even though the prelude prepares you to brace for the emotion which the moody electro alt-pop soundscape has in store, you’ll still be caught broadsided by this resoundingly superlative DIY single.

The steady absorbing beats layer the mix with atmospheric energy as they run through their rhythmically transfixing progressions, but ultimately, they serve as a platform for comeover’s distinctive-beyond-measure vocals which don’t let emotion hide behind harmony. Instead, comeover’s spiky soulful timbre cruises through the lush reverb to hypnotic effect.

You can check out Reflect via SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Zola’s Alchemic New Release “Easy” is the Soulfully Moody Aural Gem the Airwaves Were Waiting For

Posted on 25 September 2020

When an up and coming artist is able to leave you mesmerised before the first verse has run through, you know that you’ve just stumbled across an alchemic aural gem, which is exactly what happened when we listened to the soulfully moody standout single “Easy” from Zola.

If you could imagine what Florence and the Machine would sound like if they adopted a dark electronic sound, you’ll get a good idea of what you can expect from the seventeen-year-old Cambridge, MA-based singer-songwriter.

The massive production of Easy allows the transfixingly authentic track to swallow your consciousness whole. If there’s any justice left in the music industry, Zola will be able to easily climb to the top of the Indie Pop charts. If you think that sounds like high praise just wait until you feel the high which you’ll get when you hit play.

You can check out Zola’s single Easy for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Leo Wood – My Luck: An Unfathomably Stunning Mix of DnB, Folk & Blues

Posted on 7 March 2018

I’m absolutely stumped trying to figure out a way to describe Leo Wood’s stunning sound in her debut single My Luck. Sure, it mixes DnB with Pop, Soul, Blues and Acoustic Folk, but hearing that fusion for the first time from such a strong female voice is an experience of pure aural alchemy that you definitely will want to check out for yourself. The funk of the bass contrasts against the more synthy elements of DnB, which creates a rich, perplexing sound that you can’t help slipping into. If you mixed Scroobius Pip with The Sugababes you might get somewhere close to the idea of Leo Wood’s unfathomably stunning sound.

Leo Wood is a Bristol, UK based songwriter and vocalist that uses her sound to test the boundaries of the acoustic and electronic partnership. There was clearly no rulebook in sight when Leo Wood set out to make her debut track My Luck instead, she took her own inspirations, classical training and penchant for Blues and Soul to create a truly pioneering sound.

You can check out the stunning official video to My Luck on YouTube using the link below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYPYcjpDBEQ

Follow Leo Wood on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/LeoWoodOriginal

Review by Amelia Vandergast