Browsing Tag

RnB Jazz Pop

The Proto-Funk Pioneers, The Yowies, have officially arrived with their decadently disco debut single, Real Time

Posted on 10 October 2024

There’s no putting the mythologically monikered proto-funk renegades, The Yowies, back in their cage after they unveiled their debut single, Real Time. The decadent disco track pours an alchemic cocktail of indie-licked RnB, funk, jazz and soul, stirred by razor-sharp songwriting chops that cut straight through the static of the contemporary music scene.

The tonal sublimity of the seductively smooth single rivals the kaleidoscopic luminosity of a disco ball as The Yowies groove across their foundational influences, which pit the timeless soul of Winehouse against the guitar licks of Nile Rodgers and the spacey transcendence of Bowie in his Young Americans era.

With jazz nuances as a smoke machine, there are few sonic signatures as slick as what is exhibited in The Yowies’ debut release which makes it impossible not to get into the fiery smooth groove. Every replay reveals a new level of their creative genius, solidifying them as a band at the forefront of proto-funk revivalism

Real Time was officially released on September 29; stream the single on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify, now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

KASIA is spellbindingly subversive in her jazzy RnB pop single, Isn’t Love Strange

Posted on 17 April 2023

With her hair-raising vocal lines pooling into the ethereal atmosphere of her latest indie alt-pop single that pulls in jazzy RnB motifs, KASIA is spellbinding in Isn’t Love Strange.

Love is lyrically depicted as many things, but strange is far from up there as one of the most common archetypes. Plateauing far above the tired tropes, KASIA tunes into the blurred lines of affection, alluding to how conflicting the transpiring emotions can be. Communicating how fear is often an uninvited guest on the honeymoon of new relationships, KASIA artfully illustrated how much we put on the line when we put our vulnerability in someone else’s hands.

If Isn’t Love Strange was the 1000th song the singer-songwriter had penned, you could colour us impressed; yet it was only the second song written by the natural-born songstress who effortlessly has what it takes to leave the airwaves at her command.

Isn’t Love Strange will officially release on April 17; catch it on on all major platforms.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Spotlight Feature: rise and shine with the soul in Laraland’s latest single, In the Morning

Posted on 20 June 2022

Ahead of the release of her third LP, the Melbourne-based singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer, Laraland has unveiled the soul in her latest seductive jazz-pop serenade, In the Morning, featuring bassist Nama.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. ‘They’ have never succumbed to the succinctly revelatory lyrical style of Laraland. “In the morning you won’t know my name but I’m the same” perfectly encapsulates the hangover from the cocktail of alcohol, fleeting affection and amicable rejection. At least the love affair with this loungey jazz revival is built to stand the test of time.

With all the timeless class of Ella Fitzgerald nestled up against the modernist resonance in the groove-deep production, easy listening just became infinitely more arrestive. Voices like this don’t emerge every day; Laraland is notably a golden souled diamond in the superficial rough. Get her on your radar.

In her own words, here is what Laraland had to say about her latest single,

“In the Morning was written during another long lockdown in Melbourne in late 2021. It reminisces on the idea of being able to go out and meet new people at a bar, club or anywhere the night takes you. I am drawing on the idea that sometimes you form a connection with a stranger in a bar and want it to last longer than its bitter-sweet one-night expiry.”

In the Morning will officially release on June 20th. You can hear it for yourselves via Spotify.

Follow Laraland on Facebook and Instagram.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Charles Pam – dancey jazzy dance groove with ‘Give ‘Em Back’

Posted on 10 April 2021

Charles Pam is a multi-instrumentalist composer, performer, and producer, with a background in classical composition and jazz. Working with lyricist Matthew England, ‘Give ‘Em Back’ is a soulful, jazzy dance groove with an upbeat R&B feel, bouncy, fun, and uplifting. It’s a cute little electro-pop tune, a touch urban at times but with a definite ‘club’ feel that should see it – and the forthcoming EP (due June 2021) – pushing club and radio playlists this summer.

Pam’s vocal carries the track, but there’s a great backing in the piano, bass, and electro-drum beat; it’s a proper little toe-tapper, lyrically catchy with an ear-wormy hook-line that will have you singing along well after the track finishes.

‘Give ‘Em Back’ is Charles Pam’s first – self-produced – single; we look forward to hearing more when the EP is released later this year.

Check out ‘Give ‘Em Back’ on Charles Pam’s website; follow Charles on Facebook.

Review by Alex Holmes.