Funk | Soul 394 Items

Why you'll love it...
The first notes Charles Bradley sings on Victim of Love, his 2013 sophomore release, are not words but moaned lamentations. A drawn out “ooh” reminds listeners who we are dealing with: The Screaming Eagle of Soul, who doesn’t simply sing. Bradley wails, pleads, begs and screeches his way through Victim of Love. Many tracks are love songs, but they’d be better described as songs of longing.

Vinyl: Heavy Sleeves + Black Polylined Inner Sleeves, 180g Vinyl, Free Download Code.Prairie Is The Project Of Multi-Instrumentalist And Producer Marc Jacobs, Hailing From Brussels With Roots In The Netherlands. On Stage, Prairie Plays With Two Or Three Musicians And Together They Re-Create A Free Association Of Musical Ideas And Atmospheres. Prairie Has Played In Selected Venues And Festivals Across Europe And For Instance Toured With Apparat."And The Bird Said: Cut Me Open And Sing Me" Is The Second Full Length Album On Denovali Records.This Album Was Inspired By The Silence Of The Birds, By The Tone Between A Mother And Her Daughter, By The Sandsnipe Twins, By Constant Wailing Sirens, By The Memory Of A Vangelis Track. Composed In The City, In His Studio Les Lacs And In The Mountains Of The French Cévennes, Jacobs Integrates His Various Recording Locations Into His Magnificent Sound Design. By Using Various Recording Techniques, Analog Gear, Guitar Pedals, Synths, Amps And Human Voices, "And The Bird Said: Cut Me Open And Sing Me" Creates A Fountain Of Sound Layers Which Coalesce To Synthetic And Noise Infused Manipulations, Dramatic Crescendos And Subtle Field Recordings.Jacobs Focuses On Melodies, Sometimes Hidden Melodies, Or Straight Out Melodies That Took Him Back To Various Musical Influences, Current Ones But Also From His Past, Lurking Into Pop And Loving Imperfection. The Lyrics Of ""Cut Me Open"" Are The Spine Of The Record, The Scenario Where Various Species Of Birds Lead The Way, And Where Each Track Is A Short Chapter Of The Flight.Jacobs Once Again Showcases A Deep Sensitivity To Narrative And Rich Cinematic Textures By Creating A Technicolor Soundtrack.Some Words About Prairie: ""... His Cosmos Is Located Somewhere Between Bohren & Der Club Of Gore And Sunn O))), Ambient Is As Familiar To Him As Brachial Sounds, And He Is As Much Acquainted With Guitars As With Synths And Modern Technology"" (Groove)""... Sounds Like A Requiem For This Broken World."" (Spex)""... Like Ben Frost, (P...

Lavender Vinyl.In the late 1970s, a peculiar sound began bubbling up from the land of 10,000 lakes. Buried beneath 50 solid inches of annual snow, Minneapolis made a Sound quite different than what the pop world foresaw. It issued forth as a slick, black, technologically advanced fusion, poised to storm the charts. Never known for sizable African-American populations, the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul in fact harbored a tight-knit community of musiciansworking feverishly through the late '70s and early '80s toward a radical manipulation of American dance music, coating futuristic funk with the glamorous sheen of guitar rock. Synthetic ebony and ivory met electricity, with sexed-up results sent shockingly across the pop heavens like violet lightning.

Repressed by popular demand!
Lauren Laverne's comp of the week on BBC Radio 6 Music w/c 11th Jan.
Guardian feature: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/oct/12/a-thousand-teardrops-how-doo-wop-kickstarted-jamaica-pop-revolution-reggae-rocksteady
This collection of Jamaican doo wop from the late 1950s through to the early 1960s represents a period in which sound systems had begun to dominate the island, and were starting to step up their rivalry by beginning to record and release their own platters rather than rely on imported records to gain the competitive edge.
With the uniquely Jamaican ska explosion yet to completely catch hold, these tracks are largely imitative of the doo wop and R&B sound that had been reaching the island from American shores & radiowaves, albeit peppered with hints of what was to come ~ some of the future stars of ska, rocksteady and reggae are starting to cut their teeth on these tracks, providing a great view into the fledgling record industry on the island.

We’ve all heard of crowd-funding, but what about crowd-FUNKing? A play on a popular donation portal inspires the title of NYC funk band The Du-Rites’ eighth 7” single, “Go Funk Me”. Drummer Jay Mumford’s syncopated, off-kilter groove counters a ‘60s drum machine pattern, taking a page from Sly Stone’s 1973 Fresh LP. Pablo Martin’s bass and rhythm guitar lock it all together, while guest flautist Seth Hachen and haunting synths float on top melodically. Then the funk kicks up a notch with breaks, stops, turns and funky counterpoint between the whole band, before breaking into heavy dance floor funk. “Go Funk Me” channels it all from ‘70s Jeremy Steig; to film score orchestration; to expensive private press jazz-funk from the same era. Intermittent “funk banter” from Du-Rites mainstay Broughamin’ Fred brings it all home to cement the band’s trademark sound, with a funky flute twist.

The B-Side belongs to “Bucket,” a tip jar anthem any band can relate to, but Mumford’s “put it in the bucket, and pass it around” hook can apply to whatever the listener chooses. The drum groove walks the line between Afro-Beat and New Orleans funk, setting the deep groove early. Then bridge takes it to a whole ‘nother universe, before settling back in while the guitar, bass, clavinet, and even a kalimba get a piece of the action with brief solos. Another double-sided deep funk entry for The Du-Rites, who individually have worked as session and live musicians for artists from Danger Mouse; to Tom Tom Club, to Dan Auerbach; to Kelly Finnegan, Adrian Quesada, Just Blaze and countless others.

With a timeless sound that blends heavy soul and psych-rock, Monophonics have built a reputation over the past decade as one of the best live bands in the country. Led by singer Kelly Finnigan, the band of has drawn on their colorful history _ both their experiences as veteran touring performers and as individuals growing up in the Bay Area _ to create "It's Only Us," their fourth release since 2012.A reflection of what they see as the current state of the world, the record touches on difficult subjects such as broken relationships, mental health issues, gun violence and power struggles, all with an underlying message of unity, resilience and acceptance. The band's signature style of arrangement has been expanded with top-notch production and creative instrumentation to round out the Monophonics' trademark soul sound, while Finnigan's vocals are more powerful than ever. At times these tracks can feel classic, as familiar as an old song you grew up with, while simultaneously raising questions about the state of music in 2020 and what the future might hold."It's Only Us" is the sound of a group continuing to grow as songwriters, musicians, performers and people _ reflecting on where they've been, and pushing the boundaries of what's possible in the years to come.

Twelve unstoppable deep funk burners from across the Numerosphere. A smorgasbord of sounds from R&B's dapper younger cousin. Loose guitars and chunky drums lie in wait for discerning break-makers to finely chop and flip. The only funk record you'll ever need to own.