London-based soul singer Kwabs is actually from Ghana and his real name is Kwabena Sarkodee Adjepong. He studied Jazz at the Royal Academy of Music in London and was part of a reality TV show. And then a few years ago he uploaded a video on youtube with his version of Corinne Bailey Rae‘s hit song…
About a year after I moved to Berlin, in 1992, an intoxicating and haunting record made the rounds which was played in the derelict, fucked-up clubs of the changing and explosive Berlin. I soon added it to my DJ set as well of course. Up to this day, this particular song hasn’t lost any of…
It is always a great pleasure to listen to a new album from Montreal-based singer Susie Arioli. Her warm sound which comforts you like a satin cushion is complemented this time around by the imaginative arrangements of pianist and vibraphonist Don Thompson. Also on board: a five-piece brass section and her regular rhythm group guys. Susie…
The young Norwegian saxophonist and composer released her two-CD debut on ECM. And the two CDs reveal an amazingly mature and fragile, intensive and deep output which is divided into trio recordings with Johan Lindvall on piano and Katrine Schiott on violoncello on the first disc and a thirteen-piece ensemble on her sinfonietta on disc…
Here’s a singer from Sweden who released two albums in Europe before she left the continent and settled in New York in 2011. “Sing To The Sky” is Emma Larsson‘s first record in the US and features seven originals plus two covers. Her voice is wonderfully pure and her intonation and timing just perfect. But it…
Singer Brenna Whitaker is the first artist that veteran producer David Foster has agreed to produce since Michael Bublé and so, yes, you get a female version of Mr. Bublé, complete with big-sounding orchestral productions and horns and strings arranged by Chris Walden. At times, singer Caro Emerald shines through like on the opening track “Black And…
Matthew Halsall is a trumpeter, composer, producer, arranger and leader of the Gondwana Orchestra, based in Manchester. The vocals by Josephine Oniyama on the ethereal opening track “Only A Woman”, which has added, celestial harp courtesy of Rachael Gladwin, reminds me of the 60s recordings by Alice Coltrane. The esoteric atmosphere continues with the equally…
Yes it’s time again for “Soul Togetherness”, the brilliant indie-soul compilation which comes out once a year ever since 2000, usually in October and this year perfect for blowing the Berlin fog away. And it starts with a bang: Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis are back again with producing the latest Janet Jackson, but let’s…
The musicians on Luciana Souza‘s new album come from all parts of the world and create a fascinating melange of sounds and styles, probably best described in the opening track “At The Fair”, a joyous and playful tune with intensive conversations between harmonica player Grégoire Maret and guitarist Lionel Loueke. Her wordless vocals enhance the…
The hip hop-flavored “Sunrise In Beijing” opens the new “Stretch Music” album by trumpeter Christian Scott who is one of the most important young musicians around at the moment. Flutist Elena Pinderhughes gives this track, which lives from the drum pad backbeat of Corey Fonville, an exotic twist. Christian also plays the sirenette and reverse…