Vinyl - R&B / Modern

Some new generation singers do manage to step into the spotlight of course. Rita Ora parlayed her big hit with DJ Fresh into megapop ubiquity; Katy B, of course, has managed to outshine her producers consistently, as has Jessie Ware. But acts where the singer gets equal billing with the production are an interesting balancing act, and are few and far between. The ongoing partnership between SBTRKT and Sampha comes close, as do Alunageorge (although the latter feel like their personality has been workshopped out of them rather), but new duo Anushka on Gilles Peterson's Brownswood label feel like the closest we've come yet to the nineties glories of, say, Moloko.

Max Wheeler and Victoria Port's songs fizz with the textures of modern house music – with occasional diversion into tougher or stranger rave territories – but their songs bubble over with something extra at every turn. Whether it's Port's massed jazz harmonies on “Never can Decide”, the casually sassy nineties R&B feel of “I Have Love 4 U”, the churchiness of the slow jam “This Time” or the raging social awareness underpinned by snarling bass in “Mansions”, these are complete constructions where the song is integral to the groove and vice versa. If the current wave of dance is to consolidate its success, bands like this are what we need. This is a brilliant album. – The Art Desk

After the 2019 release of their debut album "Dark Smoke", the Danish trio Athletic Progression has gone from strength to strength in Denmark. Multiple sold out shows in DK and abroad, as well two Danish Jazz Award nominations - and even one for Danish musician of the year! - later, the group is now ready to release their next album, an instrumental opus years in the making. Highly recommended for fans of Thundercat, J Dilla, Comet is Coming and the like. – HHV

Jazz, soul and hip-hop influenced the collection of nine songs takes you on a gorgeous journey with rap, instrumentals and soulful vocals.

The album opens with the immediately immersive Cloudy Day featuring the captivating vocal presence of Minna Forouzandeh. As an opening track, it’s a winner. Minna also features on several tracks such as Battlefield, Dark Smoke and Cut to the Cheese, and carries each into the highly-seductive genre of lo-fi/neo-soul. Elegant, and dreamy and all enthralling.

Between these sumptuous singles, the band produce two modern hip-hop tracks both of highly-listenable quality. UK Rapper Isatta Sheriff spits rhymes, fluid and sassy on Stepney Tale. Her life reflected in engaging verses. And the single – Stay Mellow features fellow Dane Blacc El who delivers a smoother rap, with a Q-Tip, Arrested Development style of flow. There are 5.41 minutes here to savour. And interluded between these tracks are three instrumentals, Danish Design Part 1 & 2 and Club Berlin, demonstrating their jazz-influenced roots, with edgy beats, electronic keys and samples. The groove on these is endlessly-playable. Each track earns its inclusion and announces Athletic Progression as a band with an exceedingly bright future.

Dark Smoke is an album to inhale, absorb and enjoy – Scandinavian Soul

70s inspired modern soul!

In Another Life is produced by Adrian Younge, whose '70s-R&B-inspired live arrangements match the singer’s raw energy. Younge finds just the right mix of soul for the singer's ruminating ballads. Guests include Kendrick Lamar, Big K.R.I.T., and Kimbra. 

From local imprint Darker Than Wax, reaching out worldwide!

Nomad’s Land is essentially an honest reflection of the artist’s life experiences - inspired by people, relationships, psychedelic experiences, and human existence. The album also represents Dominic’s first outing as a vocalist, bouncing between soulful singing, spoken word, and freestyle rap. This vocal element is crucial to the album’s impact, adding a layer of heart and truth to these deeply personal compositions.

Deep diversity can be found throughout the record, from the sino-grime inflected Time Unremembered, to the lush piano-trio vibes on Feeling, to the glitchy breakbeat jazz hybridity of DMT. Yet despite these seemingly disparate shades, Nomad’s Land is a singular statement and front-to-back listening experience, unified by beautiful production and grounded in raw musicality.

With early support from Alex Barck (Jazzanova), Soul Clap, Simbad, Ennio Styles, and Jad & The (Beats of No Nation) 

A TAV Curator's Pick.

New Amerykah Part One (4th World War) is the fourth studio album by American neo soul singer Erykah Badu. After a hiatus from recording music due to writer's block, Badu communicated with several hip hop producers over the Internet and worked on new music using the GarageBand software program on her laptop. Once the songs were composed, she went on to record most of the album at Electric Lady Studios in New York City.

New Amerykah Part One is an esoteric concept album titled as a pun on Badu's first name and a reflection of the record's political leanings. It features social commentary and themes related to the plight of the African-American community, including poverty, urban violence, complacency, and cultural identity. The record's densely produced music incorporates funk, R&B, hip hop, soul, jazz, and electronica styles.

When New Amerykah Part One was released by Universal Motown on February 26, 2008, it received widespread critical acclaim and debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 albums chart. At the end of the year, it was named by many critics as one of 2008's best records, and by December 2009, it had sold 359,000 copies in the United States. Badu promoted the album with a supporting tour, The Vortex World Tour, during May to July 2008. - Wiki

“The first in a series of pointedly social records from Erykah Badu, this fascinating, sonically adventurous album finds her exploring a post-Civil Rights landscape in which African-Americans have been left to sort out how to have a cultural identity as part of a nation that had, up until very recently, been a dedicated adversary. Madlib, 9th Wonder, and Shafiq Husayn are among the producers.” - Pitchfork

Item description:

FKJ first made waves on the scene with “The Twins.” Its fusion of soul, funk and techno lead the Parisian producer to become known as a master of creating smooth, seductive beats. Major success followed after with “Lying Together,” his first track to hit the charts. The track was built on a foundation of classic electronic keyboard and layered with soulful crooning. “Take Off” is FKJ’s latest serving of smooth, polished production. The album contains four tracks and boasts some fantastic collaborations. – The Play Ground

On their second album, the French-Cuban twins Lisa-Kaindé and Naomi Díaz make gorgeous, genre-agnostic meditations on resilience and mindful resistance.

To hear “Deathless,” from Ibeyi’s second album, Ash, is to be thrust headlong into the fearful memory of a young woman of color and feel that cold grip as instantly as she did six years ago. “He said, he said/You’re not clean/You might deal/All the same with that skin,” sings Lisa-Kaindé Díaz, one half of Ibeyi’s sister act, of the police officer who arrested her in France when she was 16. He had assumed she was a dealer or drug addict; he handled her harshly, shouted obscenities in her face, and took her purse.

There are creases in Díaz’s high jazz trill here, well-worn trails of dismay; other songs on Ash suggest the past year has deepened them. Yet she and her twin, Naomi, respond to this physical and psychic violation with generosity, echoing Solange, Dev Hynes, and other artists who have met today’s emboldened hate with meditations on resilience and mindful resistance. The French-Cuban sisters offer worldly, skyward rallying cries to the distressed that belie their youth. Their genre-agnostic musicality widens the aura of inclusion, twining downtempo electro-soul, hip-hop, jazz, and fervently slapped cajón percussion that nods to West African Yoruba culture. – Pitchfork

In 2017, we’ve only caught a few glimpses of what Ivan has been working on, namely the soulful Kaytranada x Kiefer produced loosie “Also” and the jazzy MNDSGN produced single “Young Eye”. As it turns out, these two cuts are a good indication as to what the Oslo based artist has in store for us with his next LP release. On November 10h of this year, Ave presents his sophomore LP “Every Eye”.

“Every Eye”, with its symbiosis of different producers, musicians and vocal styles puts Ivan Ave in his own lane. Leaving behind the sample heavy sound he’s gained recognition with, Ivan embarks on his first musical journey free of chopped up jazz, soul and funk records. But it would be an understatement to say that “Every Eye” still has jazz, soul and funk for days. Enlisting musical homies like Fredfades, MNDSGN, DJ Harrison, Kiefer, Kaytranada and Dâm- Funk on the production side, Ivan carves out his path as an ever-growing MC and singer.

All-though “Every Eye” sometimes hovers in a state of weightlessness genre wise, there is no shortage of gravity in Ave’s lyrical universe. Ivan seems to have written this record as his own self help book, dealing with the mechanisms of the mind, the heart, and the world he sees (or doesn’t see).The title “Every Eye” refers to our various angles of view; the ones we choose and the ones we are assigned to. – Ivan Ave | Bandcamp

On jitwam’s journey, he’s worn several musical faces that all highlight soulful sounds within the world of psychedelic indie rock, the hip-hop realm, and underground house music.

These sounds and musical identities are apparent in his 12-track album of broken microphone blues, heartfelt vocals, and smooth assorted instrumentation. It follows jitwam’s well-received EPs on his own imprint, The Jazz Diaries, which secured him a spot on Moodymann’s DJ Kicks compilation.

HONEYCOMB was recorded at the Steam Room Sessions studio in London, where Natureboy Flako lent his special touch to jitwam’s tracks across some intimate collaborative sessions. We’re left with sonic “diary entries” that put a magnifying glass on life’s mundane moments, turning them into inspired tales of life, love, sadness, and periods of ecstatic release. – Jitwam | Bandcamp

Born in Assam, Gauhati, in Northeast India, but currently based in New York’s storied borough of Brooklyn, jitwam spent his formative years in New Zealand and Australia, before living in monasteries in Thailand, orphanages in South Africa, and washed out apartments in London. Of everywhere and nowhere, his music draws influence from a litany of iconoclasts including, but not limited to RD Burman, Moondog, The Velvet Underground, Yayoi Kusama, Jay Electronica, Jay Dilla, Moodymann, Leon Thomas, Madlib and Asha Bhosle.

Across the album he utilises knowledge acquired through years spent digging through dusty crates, and talents honed as a multi-instrumentalist, producer, and vocalist. A series of stumbling, jazz/soul-rooted beat sculptures, each buried beneath a haze of fuzzy psychedelia, broken microphone blues, and articulated through a freestyled process he describes as “first thought, best thought”, ज़ितम सिहँ solidifies jitwam's spot as a major emerging talent.

Recalling the fourth world dreamscapes explored by oddball songwriters like Connan Mockasin, Clarence Clarity, Jai Paul, Silicon, and Unknown Mortal Orchestra, it represents a time of transition and remembrance for jitwam, while still fulfilling the core qualities he looks for in song. In his words, “Music is a refuge. A shelter from the storm. A place you can go to close your eyes.” – Jitwam | Bandcamp

Origin is a solid album for Jordan Rakei, a professional statement from an artist who seems to be just beginning to show everything he has to offer. Here, Rakei has more confidence than most emerging artists, and is able to implement his lush production into a unified work of paranoid dark realism. Where his previous albums were introspective and personal, Rakei now funnels his frustration outward, taking on themes that are universal to our cultural identity. At its worst, this record feels like a stepping-stone toward a great release, but at its best, Origin is a fun and rich album and a demonstration of Rakei’s significant potential. – Sun Genre

Soulful, intimate and expansive all at once, Jordan Rakei’s third album, “Origin”, cuts straight to the point, in every sense of the word. The melodies are brighter, the sound is bigger and the vision behind it more finely-tuned. Switching up from the highly personal and intimate portrait he painted with 2017’s “Wallflower”, which was a way of grappling with his experience of anxiety and introversion, “Origin” is overtly inspired by dystopian visions of our future - notably Charlie Brooker’s Black Mirror, Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale and David Lynch’s Twin Peaks. “I’m worried that we’re losing a sense of connection,” explains Jordan, with many of the album lyrics exploring technological growth, and how it affects our sense of humanity. For example, new single ‘Say Something’ is “about speaking up for what you believe in”, a call to arms for future humans to stand up against the AI systems which govern a now-dystopian world. It follows recent single ‘Mind’s Eye’, which envisions a future world where malfunctioning tech implanted in the human body has flooded the users mind with projections of chaos. He meditates daily, something he adopted partly in response to his issues with anxiety, and something which has shaped his worldview and informed his writing and production process. – Bandcamp

A TAV Curator’s Pick.

99.9% is the debut studio album by Canadian electronic music producer Kaytranada, originally released in 2016 through XL Recording. The 15-track album features guest contributions from the likes of Anderson .Paak, Vic Mensa, Little Dragon, Syd, Craig David, AlunaGeorge, and BadBadNotGood amongst others. 99.9% was supported by five singles: "Leave Me Alone" featuring Shay Lia, "Drive Me Crazy" featuring Vic Mensa, the Karriem Riggins and River Tiber-assisted instrumental "Bus Ride", "Glowed Up" featuring Anderson .Paak, and "Lite Spots". – Wiki

“Kay first made his name as a Soundcloud standout and dance DJ, but he has the mentality of a musico-archaeologist, digging past yesterday’s obvious pop gems to unearth the overlooked. In its sonic diversity, his album is reminiscent of Madlib’s crate-digging dynamism, but unlike a lot of instrumental hip-hop (or the house artists he’s sometimes grouped with), Kay’s beats are not at all rigid or predictable. His drums are configured strangely, bending, shifting, doubling back. With those rhythms, and his own custom-made synths, the 23-year-old shows himself to be a strong-willed studio auteur on a mix of instrumental and lyric-based tracks.” – Pitchfork

“After racking up millions of plays on streaming sites, Kaytranada has arrived, an artist of the digital age whose respect for the Golden Age will draw fans in, and whose attention to detail will keep listeners nodding their heads throughout. Along with a growing legion of fans, Kaytranada’s debut project 99.9% has been cosigned by an eclectic mix of artists including Vic Mensa, Phonte, Craig David, Anderson .Paak, BadBadNotGood, GoldLink and more. A slew of instrumental, Hip Hop and R&B tracks, the album, much like the title suggests, earns high marks.” – Hip Hop DX

Item description:

It's the utmost honor for Sonar Kollektiv to be in the position to introduce “Ankhor”, the brand new album by Liz Aku. Having recorded all sorts of music with different outfits as well as solo projects over the last fifteen years the Belgian soul singer and highly gifted songwriter definitely earned her stripes and is anything but a newcomer to this game. She seems to have found her own, distinctive voice, after traveling to New Zealand and a far-reaching encounter with Mara TK from Electric Wire Hustle.

With “Ankhor” (a combination of the Egyptian symbol for eternal life “Ankh” and “anchor”) Aku accomplished a masterpiece of Nu Soul, Jazz and Pop, which will make her join the upper league of the players on the scene. For this cause, several allies and befriended producers have helped her out. With Mara TK leading the way obviously, who co-produced three out of the album's twelve songs. On “Breathing Underwater” and the sublime, for the whole album groove defining opening song “The Drum Major Instinct” the native New Zealander duets with Aku. - Bandcamp

While jazz and funk are at the core of Michele Manzo’s musical foundation, the Italian artist deftly draws upon his inspirations in hip-hop, dub, and Brazilian music as both an instrumentalist and producer. But above genres, inimitable grooves are the key driver of his work, and in his grooves one can hear the vibe of a moment being captured and perpetuated for eternity. With this combination of musical depth and raw feeling, it is no surprise Michele has crossed paths with Darker Than Wax, and we feel truly blessed to present his LP ‘ALL RISE’ to the world.

‘ALL RISE’ is a genuine reflection of Manzo’s art form, which sees so many different styles and influences coming together in the most natural, organic way. Everything was recorded live using bass, synth bass, guitar, old analogue keyboards, blended together with modern synths, dub delays and ambient fx - giving off the familiar warmth of boom bap and progressive stimulation of neo-soul. The pervasive harmonies and clever use of chords give the album a real musical depth, but grounded with an effortless, natural approach to creation. - Bandcamp

Nick Murphy (fka Chet Faker) fires off in a new direction while trying to bridge a gap with his diverse new EP featuring Afrobeat, R&B, soul, and Kaytranada—sometimes all at once. - Pitchfork

After teasing the project with a stylish Johann Rashad-directed trailer last week, Nick Murphy‘s Missing Link EP has arrived. Billed as “a new collection of tracks that bridge the sonic shift between Chet Faker and Nick Murphy,” Missing Link offers up five tracks in all and even kicks off with a collaboration between Murphy and Kaytranada, “Your Time.” The EP marks Murphy’s first post-Chet Faker project and follows the singles “Fear Less” and “Stop Me (Stop You),” both of which debuted in the latter months of 2016. - Hypebeast

For years, the music of UK vocalist Olivier Daysoul has been burning bright. A deep-voiced songwriter with a penchant for collaboration, the man has worked alongside Onra, Bibio and Hudson Mohawke in the studio and logged many a mile on the road with Oddisee‘s live backing band. If R&B were a kitchen, Olivier could rightly say that he’s worked every single station, from savory to sweet. But now, a change is happening. For his new Black Music project, the “Daysoul” moniker is being shed; Olivier is taking up his proper surname – St. Louis – as his new artistic identity, and from the sound of things the effect has been one of revitalization.

It only takes a few seconds for opener “Ain’t Cool” to find its stride, coasting Curtis Mayfield-like on the breeze. Things time travel to the late 90s on “Dog In Man,” which features a Dilla-level drum chop and more syrupy vocals. “Ship is Going Down” is an all-sneering strut, while EP closer “The Proud” gradually unfolds as a patient, tender ballad. With just one short and sweet record, the new Olivier St. Louis has already proven that there’s no groove he can’t bend to his melodic will. - Okayplayer

After releasing a collaborative EP with Warp's Bibio, who is also featured as a producer on “Ever since the fall”, this 2nd solo release under Olivier St.Louis marks the starting point of worldwide live efforts for 2017 with continuous touring. He'll tour with German AnnenMayKantereit for a few dates & will join his partner in crime Oddisee for his “The Iceberg” Wolrd Tour afterwards. All of this comes after a successful UK Tour with Laura Mvula this fall. His upcoming release “Ever since the fall EP”, will be out on Jakarta Records in February 2017 and features productions by Bibio, Olivier himself and co-productions by Oddisee. 6 tracks somewhere in between lo-fi soul, drum computer sounds, warm basslines and funk trenched live compositions...

Prince and his all-female backing band 3rdEyeGirl present Plectrumelectrum! A must have for the Prince completionist!

'The soul singer’s latest is a multi-perspective, multi-genre examination of addiction and family breakdown.'

'The R&B legend still stays close to the sounds that raised him, as on the straight-up gospel song “Belongs to God.” But even that inclusion belies an artist more willing to embrace loose ends, disorienting interruptions, and the unknown. On Jimmy Lee, Saadiq shout-sings, whispers, and croons with new abandon. It feels like a refutation of his old reserve, and it also represents a welcome stretch from Saadiq before he takes his sound all the way back to his beginnings: He recently announced that a Tony! Toni! Toné! reunion is in the works.' - Pitchfork

"Husayn’s musical vision is fundamentally communal. And while The Loop’s big-name guests will likely draw attention to the project, it feels deeper and more complex than the typical big-budget, feature-heavy release. Much in the same way that classics by Parliament-Funkadelic, Rotary Connection, and Earth, Wind & Fire are group efforts that sprung from the brain of a single founder, The Loop is music born of Husayn’s singular creativity, but forged in the spirit of cooperation and egalitarianism." - Bandcamp Daily

'See You Soon’ is the third album from Tokyo-based UK native submerse on the Project: Mooncircle imprint. A mélange of Slow-Jams, R&B, Hip Hop and Soul created while on a steady diet of 90’s NBA basketball and Dreamcast games. ’See You Soon’ features collaborations from fellow Tokyo-based artist Fitz Ambro$e and L.A.-based Devin Morrison and Pink Siifu.' - Project Mooncircle