Aurgasm

raw funk // soul

Some people say funk is all about the drum breaks. Mike Bandoni IS drum breaks. Funkshone is built up from behind the drum kit with heavy hitting snares, a whirlwind of hi-hats and a kick drum so fat it shakes your booty for you. On their second album 2, Bandoni and partner in crime Nino Auricchio go from cinematic funk to full on screaming soul no holds barred. Funkshone dishes it all out with raw energy and endless attitude.

Banging grooves, exploding soul.
Funkshone – It Ain’t Never Gonna Work
Funkshone – Soul Survivor, Pt. 1
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Retro // Soul // Funk

The Soul Snatchers are a retro funk/soul band from the Netherlands, who are built around rhythm section and producers Ton v/d Kolk (Bass) and Phil Martin (Drums). The two are also responsible for other funky outfits like AIFF (Afro Influenced Funk Federation) and Laura Vane and the Vipertones. Ton and Phil are dedicated to bringing back the vintage soul sound known from the sixties and seventies. The Soul Snatchers have an emphasis on the funkier side, lush with syncopated drums and punchy horns and mostly vocalised by Jimi Bell Martin and Curtis T. The contemplative slow groover ‘Who I Am’ is included above from their second LP Scratch My Itch. ‘Good Foot Down’ and ‘I Can’t Stand It’, two uptempo tracks from their first LP Sniffin and Snatchin, pull you to the dancefloor and are a clear nod to the master himself: James Brown.

Dutch funk with a strong groove.
The Soul Snatchers – Good Foot Down (feat. Curtis T.)
The Soul Snatchers – I Can’t Stand It (feat. Jimi Bell Martin)
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quirky soul // electronic

Kinny is a dame with personality & soul, originally from Canada, she now finds her home in scandinavia. Trained as a classic vocalist, she released Forgetting to Remember with electronic music producer Espen Horne in 2006, showing off the match between her unique vocal stylings and Horne’s original production. A few years later Kinny saw her debut solo album Idle Forest of Chit Chat produced by a multitude of producers (Quantic, TM Juke & Diesler, a.o.). With that album, the seeds were planted for a new collaboration with production duo Souldrop. They produced two tracks on Kinny’s first, of which the Darondo sampling ‘Water For Chocolate’ is included below. After battling and overcoming a severe OCD-induced breakdown following a traumatic incident, Kinny has now released her second solo album Can’t Kill a Dame With Soul produced entirely by Souldrop. ‘Up/Side/Down’ is a good example of what you’ll find on the album, showing how she deals with her OCD through musical and lyrical expression.

Unique Soul with OCD (meaning Obviously Cool Dame).
Kinny – Water For Chocolate
Kinny – Up/Side/Down
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southern rock // soul

Sothern rock bursting with soul! Alabama Shakes amplify my love for music. Their powerful groove and vigorous energy makes me a little less sad about great 60′s acts I was born too late to see live. Janis Joplin meets Nina Simone rocking out with The Black Keys, shedding gleams of hope to shake loose dusty spirits.

Turn it up.
Alabama Shakes – Hold On
Alabama Shakes – You Ain’t Alone
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soul // soft r&b

The transatlantic success of British retro-soul singers is nothing new. From Amy Winehouse to Adele, British female artists have been strongly dominating the musical landscape for nearly a decade. LeaLea Jones delivers that kind of British retro-charm with an über-cool beat that brings to mind such Aurgasm favourites as Anjulie and Corinne Bailey Rae. She first captured my attention back in 2010 with her catchy single “Cake” and is currently working on her debut album. “Dry”, taken from the upcoming album, might be some of the finest urban grooves I’ve been listening to lately, offering some solid yet not overly produced beats and sweet soul vocals.

Sultry doze of neo-soul, jazz and R&B.

LeaLea Jones – Dry

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