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CURTIS HARDING - SOUL POWER
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ARTIST:
TITLE:
Soul Power
LABEL:
CATNO:
7396-1
FORMAT:
Vinyl record
DESCRIPTION:
Debut LP From Atlanta Soul Singer -At a time when indie-leaning music fans have discovered retro-soul and make records that capture all the sounds and practically none of the feeling of vintage R&B, Curtis Harding is a breath of fresh air: an artist with a real gift for classic soul music stylings but little obvious interest in nostalgia.
Harding's solo debut, Soul Power, shows the man is one of the best new R&B singers extant, but even though the sound of these tunes certainly harkens back to vintage soul (mostly of the southern variety), Harding doesn't suggest he's slavishly trying to replicate the past. Instead, this music fuses the sounds of the '60s and early '70s while injecting them with an edgy energy that's solidly contemporary. Harding's phrasing is warm, flexible, and expressive without sinking into the frantic melisma that passes for R&B vocalizing in the 21st century, and on these songs, he sings with the band, not over them; his interplay with the musicians is smart and full of fire, and whether the music suggests the Rolling Stones ("Surf") or the Spinners ("Keep on Shining"), he sounds well-focused and respectful of his accompanists, who perform with a lean, determined authority on these sessions. Soul may be Harding's strong suit, but he's not afraid to rock out on "The Drive" and "I Don't Wanna Go Home" (guitars do dominate these arrangements), and the engineering and production gives these tracks a natural, spacious sound that flatters Harding and the band equally. Having worked with OutKast and Cee Lo Green, Curtis Harding knows something about soul music in the present as well as the past tense, and Soul Power is music that honors the rich traditions of classic R&B while keeping its head and heart in the here and now; some folks say you can't have it both ways, but Curtis Harding is here to show that's a lie.
Harding's solo debut, Soul Power, shows the man is one of the best new R&B singers extant, but even though the sound of these tunes certainly harkens back to vintage soul (mostly of the southern variety), Harding doesn't suggest he's slavishly trying to replicate the past. Instead, this music fuses the sounds of the '60s and early '70s while injecting them with an edgy energy that's solidly contemporary. Harding's phrasing is warm, flexible, and expressive without sinking into the frantic melisma that passes for R&B vocalizing in the 21st century, and on these songs, he sings with the band, not over them; his interplay with the musicians is smart and full of fire, and whether the music suggests the Rolling Stones ("Surf") or the Spinners ("Keep on Shining"), he sounds well-focused and respectful of his accompanists, who perform with a lean, determined authority on these sessions. Soul may be Harding's strong suit, but he's not afraid to rock out on "The Drive" and "I Don't Wanna Go Home" (guitars do dominate these arrangements), and the engineering and production gives these tracks a natural, spacious sound that flatters Harding and the band equally. Having worked with OutKast and Cee Lo Green, Curtis Harding knows something about soul music in the present as well as the past tense, and Soul Power is music that honors the rich traditions of classic R&B while keeping its head and heart in the here and now; some folks say you can't have it both ways, but Curtis Harding is here to show that's a lie.
PRICE:
£18.49
RELEASED YEAR:
SLEEVE:
Mint (M)
MEDIA:
Mint (M)
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Last FM Information on Curtis Harding
Please note the information is done on a artist keyword match and data is provided by LastFM.
Curtis Harding (born June 11, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter. In performances, his vocals lead soul music fused with such influences as gospel music, blues, and rock, and psychedelia.
The offspring of a mother who sang gospel, and a retired veteran, he traveled all over the country as a child, singing alongside his parents, learning that music was in fact the great communicator, and that the key was not just in how pretty the notes were, but how if you were honest in what you were singing, you could stir a person on the inside.
This is what Otis Redding knew. What Sam Cooke, and Bo Diddley, and B. B. King knew. That somehow there was a way to take your experiences, your pain and joy, and give them melody, cause them to live and breathe and massage the hearts and minds of all those who hear. That is what Curtis Harding does on his new album. He figures out how to tap into the old soul man of the past without mimicking or bastardizing it, but instead evoking the spirit of the true Soul music of yesterday, meshed with the realities of now.
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Soul isn’t a feeling, a sound or a movement. It’s a connection, a current in the air—the spark of recognition, emotions leaping across live wires. It’s the way a sinewy bassline steers your hips and eyes to the stranger across the club. It’s how a handful of humble words can give millions the inspiration to overcome. It’s the genius of a simple chorus that can explain the hard truths you couldn’t last time you saw her.
Curtis Harding says that soul music, and his music, speak for themselves. It’s self-evident on the Atlanta artist’s debut, Soul Power. The driving sound of his electrified Stratocaster, the foot-stomping backbeat and the lyrics swimming in reverb—with something this flourishing, it’s almost reductive to just dig around the roots.
Harding’s style was born in Michigan and bred on the road, a restless childhood spent singing gospel alongside an evangelizing mother, then cultivated in Atlanta, where he sang backup for CeeLo Green and befriended the Black Lips (he plays with Cole Alexander in Night Sun).
But, as befits a restless traveler, his music calls one place home, but fits in anywhere. The heartbreaking optimism of “Next Time,” a wry breakup tale mapping out a road the protagonists may never meet upon, the bottom-scraping blues of “Castaway,” or the wistful affection of “Keep on Shining” could easily be Harding’s story, or yours. They’re scenes you didn’t perform in, but know all the lines.
There’s a foundation to the stirring soul Harding has created. “Gospel is inspiring,” says Harding. “From hardship and trials, you make something beautiful. It’s the history of black people in America, what happened to us during slavery, it’s the foundation of blues, R&B, soul, country, rock.” But he’s not just preaching to the choir—Harding’s out there on the road, singing alongside everyone else looking for something real. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.