Tag: Mary J. Blige Be Happy

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

I’ve written quite a bit about the acclaimed New York-based electronic dance music/neo-disco outfit Escort and their indomitable frontwoman and bassist  Adeline Michele throughout the course of this site’s eight-plus year history.  Now, as you may recall, the Escort frontwoman will be releasing her self-titled full-length on Friday, and the album is a bit of a sonic and aesthetic reset button from the full-length that she released a few years ago.  In fact, the album’s first single “Emeralds” was a slinky, 80s Quiet Storm-inspired synth soul that brought Prince to mind, while being centered around a a sinuous bass line and Adeline’s sultry vocals. “Before,” the album’s  Chaka Khan and Rufus‘ “Ain’t Nobody,”  Mary J. Blige’s “Be Happy,” and Patrice Rushen‘s “Feels So Real”-like featured shimmering and arpeggiated synths and Adeline’s pop superstar vocals. 

“Hi Life,” the latest single off the Escort frontwoman’s soon-to-be released album is a straightforward yet ecstatic house music banger featuring shimmering and arpeggiated synths, thumping tweeter and woofer rocking beats, a rousing hook and Adeline Michele’s sultry pop superstar vocals. Sonically, the song brings Inner City’s house music classic “Good Life” and Larry Levan to mind but with a modern sheen.

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

Now, throughout the the bulk of this site’s eight year history, I’ve written quite a bit about the acclaimed New York-based dance music outfit Escort,which features their indomitable frontwoman and bassist Adeline Michele, and as you may recall she released a solo album a few years ago — but her forthcoming self-titled, full-length effort slated for a November 9, 2018 release is something of a reset button; in fact, the Morgan-Wiley-produced “Emeralds” found the Escort frontwoman’s sound moving towards slinky 80s Quiet Storm-inspired synth soul reminiscent of Prince and others, centered around a sinuous bass line and Adeline Michele’s sultry vocals.

“Before,” the self-titled album’s latest single is centered around a funky, disco-like bass line, twinkling keys, shimmering and arpeggiated synths and Adeline’s effortless and self-assured pop superstar vocals — and while the song sonically nods at Chaka Khan and Rufus‘ “Ain’t Nobody,”  Mary J. Blige’s “Be Happy,” Patrice Rushen‘s “Feels So Real” and classic Chicago house music, it possesses a soulful and disco-like ecstasy.
 

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Pop Star Nicole Wray Returns with a 90s Hip-Hop Soul and Classic Soul Channeling and Deeply Personal, New Single

Queen Alone may be Nicole Wray’s first full-length effort in some time; however, Wray is reunited with the original backing band from Lady Wray’s early days, along with Big Crown Records’ Leon Michels and Daptone Records Tom Brenneck handling production and as Wray explains in press notes the album is a “reflection of my soul. It’s who I am today. ” And as a result, the material on the album is inspired by the singer/songwriter’s life. The album’s latest single “Do It Again” is reportedly is a story about a failed relationship, as well as the story of a cherished and revered intimacy that the song’s narrator is desperate to re-enter regardless of the consequences on her heart and soul. Sonically speaking the song manages to channel What’s the 411 and My Life-era Mary J. Blige and bolstered by the Daptone Records famed horn section paired with silky smooth vocals.