Browsing Tag

Old School Soul

Caleya Black – Stay with Me: A Homecoming for the Soul

Posted on 30 November 2024

Love may be a hard emotion to put into words, but when Caleya Black weaved it into her organically seraphic single, Stay with Me, those four little words transformed into a universal language. The old-school soul instrumentals, complete with staccato guitars carving the contours of delicious groove pockets, cradle the singer-songwriter’s arcanely transcendent vocal register. Through her harmonies, the classic tones she touches transform into a timeless tonality, proving that soul music doesn’t need reinvention to feel relevant.

Black’s artistry harks back to an era when soul ruled the airwaves, as Urban Magazine noted about her breakout single Our Song. The Motown-inspired artist from New Jersey, steeped in gospel roots, knows how to craft music that defies trends. Her debut EP, Still Loves, and standout tracks like Go There and Love Come Down, have cemented her reputation as an artist who respects the legacy of soul while asserting her place within it.

In Stay with Me, the restraint in the instrumentation highlights Black’s command over her vocal expression. Every note feels deliberate, every harmony meticulously placed to pull listeners into the raw honesty of the lyrics. This is the kind of track that doesn’t demand attention but earns it with its authenticity, proving Caleya Black doesn’t just make soul music—she embodies it.

Stay with Me is now available to stream on all major platforms, including SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Charlotte Forman opened a gateway to the golden era of soul with ‘Make Me Your Girl’

Posted on 20 February 2024

Charlotte Forman opened a gateway to the golden era of soul with the superlatively timbered harmonies in her seminal single, Make Me Your Girl. It’s one of the few instances in the landscape of contemporary music where authenticity doesn’t play second fiddle to commercial appeal.

The UK songstress always puts her intricate imprint on her blends of soul, pop, jazz, and RnB. Make Me Your Girl, which unfolds as a compelling journey through the nuances of old-school soul is no exception. Forman’s voice, a potent blend of power and vulnerability, carries the song with an effortless grace reminiscent of the genre’s legends. The single’s cinematic quality is undeniable. Each crescendo and harmony is crafted with precision, enveloping the listener in a hauntingly warm tapestry of sound.

The lyrics, a poignant reflection of Forman’s personal experiences, speak of love and longing with an honesty that is both rare and relatable – despite our contemporary fear of rejection getting in the way of candour.

With Make Me Your Girl, Charlotte Forman not only cements her place as a rising star in the British music scene but also as a voice for the modern romantic. Her journey from the stages of amateur dramatic groups to headlining sold-out shows is a narrative of perseverance and passion. We can’t wait to see the heights she reaches as one of the most magnetic artists of our era.

Stream Make Me Your Girl on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

MEVS sent a surge of funk-riding euphoria through the airwaves with his feel-good disco-pop anthem, Groovin’

Posted on 17 November 2022

Carving his own untrodden path back to the 70s, the Puerto Rican trailblazer, MEVS, unleashed the soul-stirring slice of euphoric funk-riding disco-pop, Groovin’.

While artists will tune in with envy of his capacity to release such a blazing debut, fans of funk, alt-RnB and authentic old-school soul will surrender to the danceable electricity in the progressively dynamic release, which paints across the brighter corners of the tonal spectrum.

Starting with the sultry rolling basslines in the smoky prelude before exploding into a riot of flavour with Nile Rodgers guitar chops and a strong brass section, immersing yourself in this intrinsically rhythmic earworm which uses ‘never give up, never give in’ as an enlivening reprise will always send a flood of dopamine through your synapses.

Groovin’ is the first single from MEVS’ debut album, Sentient Beings in the Streets, which is set to release in 2023. Even if you don’t stay tuned, something tells me his enlivening soul will be coming to a dance floor near you anyway.

Groovin’ is now available to stream on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Samuel Ashton – Breathe Easy: Meet Your New Favourite Soul Serenader.

Posted on 25 November 2021

Samuel Ashton’s latest single, Breathe Easy, is definitive proof that people who say they don’t make music like they used to are as ignorant as they are apathetic in their searches for diamonds in the commercial rough.

Breathe Easy is the ultimate soul-blues serenade between the jazzy, mellifluous ambience in the instrumentals and the timeless vocal panache. Ashton’s vocal notes effervesce with passion while trying to instil tranquillity; his sound is practically ASMR. In our disquiet reality, he really is a breath of fresh air (pun semi-intended).

Breathe Easy is due for official release on November 25th. You can check it out for yourselves on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

A taste of nostalgia – Honey Made’s ‘Brand New’ may be the real meaning of ‘soul food’

Posted on 21 December 2020

From the opening few bars of ‘Brand New’, the latest single from Austin, Texas, funk/soul groove-merchants Honey Made, it’s impossible to stop toes or fingers tapping and heads nodding; a delicious, salacious, warm and mellow slice of beautiful nostalgic funk in the vein of Sly Stone, Curtis Mayfield, or Marvin Gaye.

The honeyed (pun very much intended) vocal duetting of vocalists Willie Barnes and Donald Ford Jr. is silky smooth, deep, rich, and velvety – the superlatives just go on and on; the musicianship across the board is sublime, the bass and played-around-the-beat drums of Lee Braverman and Chris Barnes absolutely in the pocket, sitting together like only the very best soul and R&B rhythm sections can, the keys, sax, and horns absolutely perfect and mutually complimentary across the whole track.

This is contemporary-yet-old-school funk/soul at its absolute best; there’s no other way around it, ‘Brand New’ really is exquisite.

You can check out ‘Brand New’ over on Soundcloud now, or follow Honey Made on Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Alex Holmes

RnB artist Aliza Li takes us right back to the Old School with “7th Grade Complex”

Posted on 27 August 2020

Aliza Li has breezed onto the airwaves with her fresh new NeoSoul drop 7^th Grade Complex featuring Dessy. Some people may leave high school behind, but the mentality is too hard for some to shake. Aliza Li’s new track perfectly captures the frustration which manifests when dealing with a lack of maturity.

Aliza Li’s soulfully sumptuous stripped-back feat of NeoSoul offers warm glistering tones, blissfully resolving vocals and a compelling lyrical narrative which will keep you hooked from the first verse right up to the last. Dessy’s vocals perfectly round off the track, adding a little vocal bite to the smooth accordance which Aliza Li easily delivers with her notable talent.

You can check out 7^th Grade Complex for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast