Something happened to me as I pressed play on this project… I was taken aback to Hackney, London 1999 to my old mans to place listening to Jazz FM, smooth chord changes and soulful singing… As I continued listening, I was transported four years into the future to Hoxton, Troy Bar 2003. It’s amazing what good music does to you.
The production on this project is kept to a minimal, which is pleasant, No filler-sounds, electro blip-blops, just pure eclectic, authentic live instrumentation. The reason I believe why the vibe on this takes me to a soul-bar in east London is most likely because two albums that came out at that time and from that scene has a similar mode in arrangement production. One is Terri Walkers “Untitled”, the second is Amy Winehouse “Frank”. Two records about emotions to a soul jazz backdrop, I may even say that I prefer this one more than the two aforementioned due to the vocals being more in focus, great vox mix throughout the whole disc and the more basic production work.
Marie’s voice plays like a sustained brass instrument; dynamic, powerful, clear legato. Tracks such as the telling “I Want A Man” with its staccato piano accompaniment and the subtleness of key tracks such as the interlude (“Interlude”), the groove-heavy “Could We Buy A House” and title track “Feelings” have a thing in common… I call it the finger-snap-factor, which is GOOD!
Denmark’s got soul for sure…