''Soul Power'' is the debut

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings (e.g., music) issued on a medium such as compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl (record), audio tape (like 8-track cartridge, 8-track or Cassette tape, cassette), or digital distribution, dig ...

by American singer

Curtis Harding Curtis Harding (born June 11, 1979) is an American singer and songwriter. Primarily a soul artist, his "slop 'n' soul" style carries the influence of genres including blues, gospel, psychedelia, R&B, and rock. His first album, ''Soul Power'' (201 ...

, released May 6, 2014, by

Burger Records Burger Records was an American independent record label and record store in Fullerton, California, United States. The label was founded in 2007 by Sean Bohrman and Lee Rickard, members of the power pop band Thee Makeout Party. The record/vide ...

. It encompasses a wide breadth of genres, though it is primarily inspired by

soul music Soul music is a popular music genre that originated in African-American culture, African-American African-American neighborhood, communities throughout the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Catchy rhythms, stressed by handclaps ...

and his mother's

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christianity, Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the second century Anno domino, AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message w ...

singing. The album received generally favorable reviews from music critics.

Background and development

Before ''Soul Power'', Curtis Harding had worked with several artists of various genres, including backing R&B and

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

recording artist

CeeLo Green Thomas DeCarlo Callaway-Burton (born May 30, 1975), known professionally as CeeLo Green (or Cee Lo Green or simply Cee-Lo), is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer, and actor. Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Green came to initial pr ...

and collaborating with members of the

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

bands

Black Lips Black Lips is an American garage rock band from Atlanta, Georgia, formed in 1999. History The band formed in Dunwoody, Georgia, after guitarist Cole Alexander and bassist Jared Swilley left the Renegades, and guitarist Ben Eberbaugh left the ...

and

Mastodon A mastodon, from Ancient Greek μαστός (''mastós''), meaning "breast", and ὀδούς (''odoús'') "tooth", is a member of the genus ''Mammut'' (German for 'mammoth'), which was endemic to North America and lived from the late Miocene to ...

. As a child, Harding was influenced by his mother's

gospel music Gospel music is a traditional genre of Christian music and a cornerstone of Christian media. The creation, performance, significance, and even the definition of gospel music vary according to culture and social context. Gospel music is compo ...

while touring. He also sees the evolution of gospel music as parallel with the history of African Americans in the United States, as the foundation of many musical genres. "From hardship and trials, you make something beautiful," he told ''The 405''. According to Harding, many songs of ''Soul Power'' are inspired by relationships with his family and friends. "It's about love, love lost," he said prior to the album's release. "It's about overcoming different things." He also said that he sought to make the album accessible to broad audiences by incorporating many genres.

Recording and release

In 2014, Harding recorded ''Soul Power'' at Living Room Studios in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

, with Justin McNeight and Edward Rawls. They spent two weeks and recorded 20 songs; 12 were included on the album. Randy Michael composed the music to "Keep on Shining" (with Harding's lyrics); writer Jason Reynolds worked on two songs with Harding; and Harding co-wrote several other songs.

released ''Soul Power'' on May 6, 2014. The album's cover image is a black-and-white photograph by

Hedi Slimane Hedi Slimane (; born July 5, 1968) is a French photographer and couturier. From 2000 to 2007, he was the creative director for Dior Homme (the menswear line of Christian Dior). From 2012 to 2016, he was the creative director for Yves Saint La ...

of Harding, shirtless, smoking a cigarette.

Composition

Harding calls his musical genre "slop 'n' soul", based on the leftovers of music he has encountered; the influence of many genres is evident. His voice – kept mellow throughout the album – ranges "from smoky croon to silky

falsetto Falsetto ( , ; Italian language, Italian diminutive of , "false") is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ...

." Musically, ''Soul Power'' draws primarily from classic

. "Foot-stomping backbeats, brassy guitar-work, and booming horns" across the album are taken from 1960s soul. In ''Soul Power'', examples of other genres include the

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United Kingdom, United States and New Zealand in the early to mid-1980s. Although the term was originally used to describe rock music released through independent reco ...

guitar part of "I Don't Wanna Go Home"; the

garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock music that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The style is ...

groove of "Drive My Car"; the

disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...

style of "Heaven's on the Other Side". Classic

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

is featured in "Surf" (a song inspired by '' The Walking Dead'') and "I Don't Wanna Go Home" in contrast to the balladry of "Castaway". The lyrics of the somber, gospel-inspid song "Freedom" imply a connection with roots of soul music and slavery. "Keep on Shining" is shaped by a dynamic rhythm reminiscent of

northern soul Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged in Northern England and the Midlands in the early 1970s. It developed from the British Mod (subculture), mod scene, based on a particular style of African American music, Black American ...

paired with brass flair and falsetto backing vocals.

Reception

Harding was commended for his voice. "Harding's ability to keep every song in line with his personable singing and no-nonsense guitar is what makes this LP truly special – well, that and the fact that there’s not a bum track on it," wrote Michael Toland of ''

Blurt Blurt is an English post-punk band, founded in 1979 in Stroud, Gloucestershire. Background Blurt was founded in 1979 in Stroud, Gloucestershire by poet, saxophonist and puppeteer Ted Milton along with Milton's brother Jake, formerly of ...

''. "Harding is an undeniably versatile vocal talent, as you’d expect from someone schooled firstly in gospel choirs and then as a backing singer for CeeLo Green," wrote Tim Jonze of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

''. "But ... it's hard to detect what he's bringing fresh to the mix. Too often, Harding's new blues and soul sound very much like the old versions."

Track listing

Adapted from

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

Personnel

Adapted from AllMusic. * Cole Alexander – featured artist, guitar * Chris Case – keyboards * Ben Davis – clarinet, tenor saxophone * Lucas Donaud – logo * Darren English – trumpet *

– composer, guitar, mixing, primary artist, producer * Justin McNeight – engineer, mastering, mixing, percussion * Taylor Kennedy – baritone saxophone * Randy Michael – composer * Tyler Morris – guitar * Noah Pine – keyboards * Edward Rawls – engineer, mastering, mixing * Jason Reynolds – composer *

– photography * Jared Swilley – bass, composer, featured artist * Andrew Teems – composer, guitar * Sean Thompson – bass, guitar * Curtis Whitehead – bass * Caleb Williams – trumpet

Charts

References

External links

* {{Authority control Curtis Harding albums 2014 debut albums