Single Of The Week ~ Joanne Shaw Taylor ~ Mud Honey

Hello and welcome to the new segment on my blog called "Single Of The Week". Where every Friday if a song has caught my eye (and it may not be every week) then I'll be writing about it. Doesn't have to be new, its just something I've been really getting into the past week.

Lets get started with the first single of the week that comes from a blues/rock guitarist Joanne Shaw Taylor and her single called "Mud Honey" from the new album "The Dirty Truth". She has been rising up through the blues scene since her debut album 'White Sugar' 5 years ago. 

The British blues guitarist's playing has caught the eye of many music giants such as Joe Bonamassa and Stevie Wonder as an impressive feat for an established musician. She has now become the forefront female guitarist in blues, her powerful solo's and grungy rhythm sections are some of the notable things you can find in her playing. The main melody for my single of the week is nice and catchy, but not pop catchy. Just a guitar blues riff that supports the rest of the song and that's how it should be.

Joanne's voice is really captured in this single, husky, yet with a real blues spirit. Its certainly not your average voice from a female vocalist, but this isn't a bad thing. The song has a real energy and vibe throughout the song, Taylor's clear cut guitar solo's are at the forefront of the song. She doesn't hold back incase she makes a mistake, taking a risk in something she does best. 

Check out her new album "The Dirty Truth" and if you like her sound she is also playing live in the UK this November! Here are the dates in a lovely picture form!

I will have a live review of the gig at the Shephards Bush Hall very soon! I hope you can all make it to one of her gigs. 

Thanks for reading and until next time. 

Lewis 

Website: www.joanneshawtaylor.com/

Album Review ~ Prince Fatty Meets Nostalgia 77 ~ In The Kingdom Of Dub

Hello!

Welcome to this weeks main review which will feature a collaboration of two great musical minds that are Nostalgia 77 (Benedict Lamdin) and Prince Fatty (Mike Pelanconi). Nostalgia 77 is a jazz producer from the UK that is signed to the Tru-Thoughts independent label and has recently produced the latest album from Jamie Cullum. Prince Fatty is one of the hottest dub/reggae producers around at the moment in the UK scene. Merging together Nostalgia 77's jazz songs with Prince Fatty's dub remixes, it certainly sounds like an interesting blend of genre's. 

Prince Fatty has taken some classics from Nostalgia 77's catalogue of songs such as 'Quiet Dawn', 'Angel With No Halo' and his cover of 'Seven Nation Army'. He has reworked them and taken jazz into the world of dub and reggae. Fans of Nostalgia 77 can re-live some his his best work, but merged into the form of dub.

The music itself is very clear and distinct, something you'd expect from a dub/reggae album. Its great to hear such smooth guitar 'chanks' throughout a song along with crystal clear drums to sparkle the quality. The session musicians used for each track are top notch and on the money. That note for note quality is a rare sound to find these days. 

Prince Fatty has managed to blend his dub expertise and sounds impressively with Lamdin's jazz work, especially on the tracks such as "Skeletons Dub" and "Little Steps Dub". Working around all the little niche parts from a double bass to a piano solo from the Nostalgia 77 original tracks. Adding in enough elements of dub into the tracks for them to be new and reworked tracks, but not to over-power the originals to make sure people know what is his work and what is Nostalgia 77's work.

It's great to hear guests such as Alice Russell on "Seven Nation Army Dub" really shine through on this record. She has one of the best voices in the industry, but is also a hidden gem. Keeping the strongest elements in a track before you add a dub/reggae feel is something only an experienced producer like Prince Fatty can do, very well. 

The artwork (shown above) is one of my favourite pieces this year alongside with the artwork from Paolo Nutini's 'Caustic Love'. Sometimes I come across new music and want to listen to it purely for the design of the artwork, love the yellow/orange monster. 

I enjoy listening to the jazz influences from the songs such as "Positive Force Dub" being mixed with the dub production. The trumpets sound fantastic on this track and can really turn a notch up in the record. Hearing certain instruments put to the forefront for certain songs in each track just gives the album something to keep a drive going with throughout. For example the drums (especially) and the bass sound amazing in "Skeletons Dub" and really shine through on this particular track.

The album has been played a lot on BBC Radio 6 Music with the single "Medicine Chest Dub" in the 'C' List of the 6 music playlist (as of 29th October). DJs such as Lauren Laverne, Nemone and Tom Ravenscroft have all been playing the songs across the station. 

The tracks that are personal favourites of mine are "Quiet Dawn Dub", "Medicine Chest Dub", "Freedom" and "Skeletons Dub". By all means listen to the whole album, but these are the stand-outs to me. "In The Kingdom Of Dub" is out in all good record stores and the new single from Tru-Thoughts containing "Medicine Chest Dub" and "Skeletons Dub" is out in November!

Thanks for reading and until next time. 

Lewis

Seven Nation Army Dub Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/tru-thoughts/seven-nation-army-dub-feat-2

Nostalgia 77 Website: www.nostalgia77.com/

Nostalgia 77 Twitter: www.twitter.com/Nostalgia__77

Prince Fatty Facebook: www.facebook.com/princefatty

Prince Fatty Twitter: www.twitter.com/prince_fatty