Plug & Play

If you miss the sounds of the Meters, of vintage Northern soul, of James Brown, of 1960s jazz-funk, and of Hammond organ jazz by the likes of Jimmy Smith, and if you wish you could hear all of them at the same time, then you're sure to get a kick out of this Leeds-based quartet. To call the New Mastersounds "old school" doesn't quite do justice to their simultaneously backward-looking and forward-pushing sound, which fans of modern bands like the Charlie Hunter Quartet and Medeski, Martin & Wood will recognize immediately -- but so will those who cut their teeth on Jack McDuff and Lou Donaldson records. When guest vocalist Dionne Charles comes in (especially on the barnburning "Looking for an Answer"), the result is like an unholy cross between James Brown and Aretha Franklin; when the band slips into Afro-beat mode on "Kuna Matata" (featuring singer Troy Tuscan), the result is, strangely, more like a cross between Fela Kuti and Barry White. ~ Rick Anderson

ジャズ・ファンク・リヴァイヴァルの火付け役が早くも新作をドロップ。ミーターズ・マナー全開のセカンドライン・ファンクからJBマナーな曲、ヴィンテージなオルガン・ファンクにアフロまで、ボトムの太さやタメの気持ち良さ、ヌケの良さといった彼らの持ち味はそのままに、今回はディープな歌声を持つ女性シンガー、ディオンヌ・チャールズもフィーチャーし、新たな魅力も披露!　できるだけ大音量でどうぞ!
bounce (C)吉村 健