Soul Strutter: 07/03/23

Monday, 3 July 2023

2023 SoulStutter Selections - Neo Soul Top 100 - Part 1

As we are now half-way through 2023 it's time to capture some of the best releases of the year so far.

To start with we've selected 100 of the best Neo Soul releases and will break them up into four digestible parts of 25 tracks each which equates to no more than 90 minutes each.

They are in no particular order of merit, simply chronological as they were released. The first part covers tracks released in Jan & Feb 2023.

Parts 2,3 & 4 will be posted Tue, Wed & Thu.

Part 2 (Mar)

Part 3 (Mid Mar - Mid May)

Part 4 (mid May - Jun)

Natasha Watts [2023] - Music Is My Life [LRK Records] FORTHCOMING ON VINYL!

As alluded to in the post for Aphrose, but we were sworn to secrecy, LRK has just announced that the album they have been keeping under wraps is in fact Natasha Watts' "Music Is My Life".

The album will be released on limited edition vinyl, limited to 500 copies. The album is only currently available from Natasha's website on a usb stick enclosed in a cassette tape casing.

LRK's Liam Kenney has stated that pre-orders will be taken in the next few weeks so please don't hassle him about the album just yet.

For a sample of the album we posted three tracks from it earlier this year and the lead single "I Am Me" was released on 23 Jun. To give you some idea of the album's quality, we rated it 8.8.

Click on image below for link to where you can buy from.

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Details

Rating:	8.8
Explicit:	N
Genre/Style:	New Soul
Format:	Single
Media:	Vinyl
Label:	LRK Records
Cat No:	None
Date:	TBC
Price:	£TBC

Aphrose [2023] - YaYa [LRK Records] PROMO

The follow up to Aphrose's "Good Love" on LRK Records is "YaYa" which is set for digital release on Friday (7 Jul) at the same time as both sides will be released on limited edition 7" vinyl via LRK Records' Bandcamp store.

Both tracks will also feature on her sophomore album later this year. We have been meaning to post her 2019 debut album "Elements" since first hearing "Good Love", so will make sure we do.

Aphrose is the alter ego for Joanna Mohammed from Toronto who is also an in-demand backing vocals. She appeared on Claire Davis' "Get It Right" album which is how she was introduced to LRK Records who have thankfully exposed her talent to the world as "Good Love" has been very well received as we think "YaYa" will be too.

In addition, Aphrose has backed artists such as Daniel Caesar, Lee Fields & The Expressions, Jessie Reyez, and Charlotte Day Wilson and toured with Chantal Kreviazuk & Raine Maida.

LRK have broken away from the limitations of reissues and neo Northern Soul and retro music and are releasing more and more 'upfront' music, so keep an eye and ear out for their next album release which will hopefully surprise and delight equal measures.

Click on image below for link to where you can buy from.

Click icons below for further information or to connect with the artist.

Details

Rating:	8.5
Explicit:	N
Genre/Style:	Neo Soul
Format:	Single
Media:	Digital / 7" Vinyl
Label:	LRK Records
Cat No:	None
Date:	07/07/2023
Key/BPM:	N/A
Price:	£1 / £13

Sandra-Mae Lux [2023] - Perfect Weather [Self Released] PROMO

Exploring her Latin and jazz roots, Canadian, award winning, multi-instrumentalist Sandra-Mae Lux provides us with "Perfect Weather" for the summer which is due on 19 Jul.

Sandra-Mae, originally from Vancouver, now resident in London since 2017, not only sings on this recording but also plays saxophone.

She broke through in 2020 with her debut album "Happily Ever After" and was nominated for two awards: Best UK Artist in the 2020 Bright Star Awards and Jazz Artist of the Year in the Boisdales Music Awards.

Click on image below for link to where you can buy from.

Click icons below for further information or to connect with the artist.

Details

Rating:	8
Explicit:	N
Genre/Style:	Soul Jazz
Format:	Single
Media:	Digital
Label:	Self Released
Cat No:	None
Date:	19/07/2023
Key/BPM:	N/A
Price:	£1

Maeta [2023] - Cool Cat (Live) [Roc Nation Records] (Live Video)

Another live performance video from Maeta with a cover of Queen's "Cool Cat" taken from her new album "When I Hear Your Name".

Maeta will be touring to promote the album in the Autumn commencing in August with four dates in Europe in October: Berlin 9th, Amsterdam 11th, London 12th and Paris 14th. Full details from her website.

Click on image below for link to where you can buy from.

Click icons below for further information or to connect with the artist.

Details

Rating:	8
Explicit:	N
Genre/Style:	Neo Soul
Format:	Video
Media:	Digital
Label:	Roc Nation Records
Cat No:	None
Date:	28/06/2023
Key/BPM:	12A/78
Price:	£1