Find of the week: 01/20/2008


30 jan 2008, 06:11


In the past couple years the R & B / Soul scene seems to have created an ever evolving sub-genre, a.k.a. the "Amy Winehouse" scene, much to my dismay. "Evolving" may be a bad choice of words here; There were no doubt many greats (and "greaters") that came before Winehouse, but the comparisons are bound to be made. Nonetheless, she has talent, some great songs and she did reinvigorate the genre and introduce it to a wider audience. There is, however that pesky crack problem. For many this is hard to overlook, especially when her hit "Rehab" will make you groove a little less and smirk a little more considering the irony.

2007 saw a shift to Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings. Granted, she's not as well known or as high up on the charts, but she brought much more authentic soul and funk to the table. Sharon Jones is more of a throwback in the genre rather than a modern take, but she does it extremely well. As she should, since Jones is a bit older and has been singing since the 70's, she seems to know what she's doing. At least well enough to be noticed and invited to Coachella 2008. The best part: no crack needed!

Fast-forward to 2008, in a time where artists seem to be getting lots of buzz and sell out shows months before even their first album is released (see Vampire Weekend). People probably don't know they're looking for "the next Amy Winehouse", but I'm calling it right now: the comparisons will be made with Adele. They both have an accent and sing soul so they must be the same....right? As the Kevin Spacey version of Lex Luthor would say:

Adele's new album, 19, plays with the genre, creating a variety of sound throughout the listen. It's scattered with some nice little soulful love ballads here and there, but I really don't think songs like her single "Chasing Pavements" are the highlights. The real gems are songs like Cold Shoulder, My Same, and Tired. These present a good stylistic range of the album. There's so much that's going on in Cold Shoulder that your brain is being overloaded trying to soak it all in. The there's the ominous-turned-aggressive strings, layered with the jazzy xylophone and drum beat layered with the vocals. Just when you think you've got it, it shifts to some 20's sounding vocal harmonics then comes back around for more. My Same is more of a bare soul / R&B that lyrically and vocally shines. If you don't move to this, you're a freakin' robot. Tired is yet another departure, incorporating more prominent electronics throughout, interjected with some light string work. This could have been easily titled "Fucked" since it's probably uttered as much as, or more than, "Tired". "I'm fucked, I'm fucked when I don't get nothing back", either way it's apparently a song of frustration.

Sure the album isn't perfect; Some of the lyrics are a bit contrived on select songs, but when she gets it right, she gets it right and you can easily forgive and forget about those quibbles.

For the person that skipped/skimmed through this:

2006 = Amy Winehouse
2007 = Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings
2008 = Adele

For everyone else:
Drop the base comparison. These artists are doing some great work in their own respective styles and they really shouldn't be grouped as if a scientist was improving upon his genetically engineered singing clones each year (see science babies). But for future reference: keep an eye on Adele and go pick up her album on Feb. 5th or just download the damn thing.


Sharon Jones

100 Days, 100 Nights
Nobody's Baby


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