As a music genre, neo soul can be categorized as one that would be quite unfamiliar to the general Indonesian ears. Although if one mentions some of the big names in neo soul, such as Erykah Badu, D’Angelo, India Arie, and Musiq Soulchild, quite a few people would easily recognize the names and possibly a song or two by those artists. Despite its popularity, neo soul has seen quite a few comebacks in 2010, namely by Erykah Badu in her eclectic New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh and the long awaited return by Maxwell through his brilliantly produced BLACKsummers’ Night. Before discussing further about these albums it would be worthwhile to briefly highlight about the music itself. Neo soul is a music genre that originated in the early 1990s, and it is best described as R & B fused with elements of hip-hop, funk, jazz, and soul music of the ‘70s. Back then, neo soul was popularized by musicians such as Erykah Badu, D’Angelo, Maxwell, Jill Scott, Me’Shell Ndegeocello, and many more, who were heavily influenced by the classic funk and soul giants, such as Curtis Mayfield, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Bill Withers, and Aretha Franklin.

Neo soul is typified by strong classic soul vocals and mostly live instrumentation. Nowadays the music has evolved extensively where musicians also incorporate hip-hop beats, samples, and various other modern electronic sounds. A few even dares to add ethnical elements to their sound, such as D’Angelo in his superb album Voodoo. Today, the music has witnessed a variety of collaborations, most notably with hip-hop and jazz.It is not rare that one would hear hip hop artists such as the Roots, Common, and Q tip collaborate with neo soul singers and produce outstanding songs. Some brilliant collaborations include the jazz trumpeter Roy Hargrove’s Rh Factor project, namely Hard Groove (2003) and Strength EP, which include Meshell Ndegeocello, Erykah Badu, Anthony Hamilton and Q tip.

In New Amerykah Part One (2008), minimalistic sounds and the use of repeated patterns of music ideas are played throughout most of the tracks. In 2010’s Return of the Ankh, Erykah also maintains this style, and this is best illustrated in the songs 20 Feet Tall, Fall in Love (Your Funeral), and Turn Me Away. One surprising feat of Return of the Ankh is the return of the old Baduizm sound where soulful piano / keys and groovy drum beats permeate a few of the tracks. These are particularly evident in Window Seat, Agitation, and You Loving Me (Session). Overall, Erykah’s 2010 release,  Return of the Ankh is definitely one worth listening to for having a chilling and relaxing evening with friends.

On a different note, Maxwell’s long anticipated album BLACKsummer’s Night, keeps to the roots of neo soul with soulful singing and live instrumentation, as supposed to sampled beats and harmonies. After a long period of hiatus, Maxwell has returned with a fresh, powerful, and scrumptiously vintage sound, where once again he exposes his superb, raspy singing, backed by aggressive beats and soulful brass accompaniments. In Bad Habits, Cold, and Help Somebody, hard driving rhythm mixed with fully loaded harmonies provided by the rhythm and brass section, are sure to make your head bob to the groovy beats. For those who are dying to hear Maxwell’s classic soulful and emotional singing, be sure to check-out Stop the World, Fistfull of Tears, and Playing Possum. On the whole, BLACKsummers’ Night’s release is well worth the wait. The Juries of the 2010 Grammy Awards couldn’t agree more when they nominated the soul star for 6 awards, winning two of which were Best R & B album and Best R & B Song.

All in all, 2010 thus far has been quite an interesting year for neo soul, especially with the release of Erykah Badu’s New Amerykah Part Two: Return of the Ankh, and Maxwell’s triumphant return with BLACKsummers’ Night. Those who are into urban music, would agree that we are dying to wait for the comeback of some of the big names, including D’Angelo and Jill Scott.

Written by Bagus Rochadiat