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Russell first made her mark in UK neosoul circles, working with acts like Massive Attack and Quantic, but since the release of her recent second solo album, Pot of Gold (Six Degrees), she’s been seen as part of the new school of young English soul belters, along with Adele, Duffy, and, natch, Amy Winehouse. With its fleshed-out arrangements and classic soul-factory models–some Motown here, some Stax there–the record definitely sounds more like Winehouse (who seems down for the count) than those other two. Russell is a much better singer than Adele and Duffy, both of whom too often confuse mannerism with expressiveness, and she writes most of her own material. The tunes don’t always stick in your head, but they do serve her muscular pipes well; a song like “Got the Hunger?,” with its skeletal melodic material, isn’t trying to be anything but an excuse for her to stretch out and riff on it. That said, she fails to bring anything meaningful to Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy,” turning in an overwrought version that just proves Cee-Lo is the more nuanced and effective singer.
Today’s playlist:
