Music
Press
Soulcyde are a London duo who live and breathe all that is good in British music. their influences must be endless but you can hear Prince, Hendrix, Jill Scott and Omar to name a few all over their fourteen song set. from the sweet soul of opener '1/2 packed' to the humpin' grind of 'dirt track' to the reggae lilt of 'love signals' and 'hurricane'. It’s all killer and no filler and definitely a name to watch in 2008. - Rough Trade Record Store
Now this is a BAND of TRUE STATURE. These heavyweight musicians just blew my mind. From the moment they took to the stage they commanded - Natz, the vocalist, Toshi, the guitarist,were every bit the kind of performers that you would happily pay good money to see (with binoculars) in a venue such as Wembley Arena.
Natz, a tall lady with wild hair, sometime bringing to mind such soul greats as Chaka Khan or Aretha, other times Skin, of Skunk Anansi, possessed the stage and her audience, exuding oodles of personality and a big voice. Second number in, and a cool bass line revealed a cover of Erma Franklin ’s ‘Take Another Little Piece of my Heart’, but with such subtlety, that it could have been their very own. Their music continued effortlessly to fuse together cool groove, funky dance, sexy reggae, and for their two finales and current single, ‘How Is It?’, the edge and power of heavy rock. The tight-as-hell cracks from the snare drum seemed to be completed controlled by Natz, but were in the obviously talented hands of Drew on the kit. Their claim that they feel it is ESSENTIAL to perform live was certainly born out in a performance of pure, refreshing excitement. Somebody put these people in a club near me, and I will dance, dance, dance! (as will many others, I’m sure).
See SoulCyde soon, before you need the binoculars. Review by Alison Rolls
>> more /.http://www.josaka.co.uk/default.htm
- Alison Rolls- josaka.co.uk
Super talented Soulcyde are Britain's best kept secret. They're brilliant and should have a mega record deal.
Geoff Schumman BBC DJ
- BBC Radio London
and providing their worth at the top of the bill, SoulCyde did not disappoint with a sexy funk set that mixed with reggae that had the whole crowd dancing. It wasn’t only the music that had that effect – the band moved around the tiny stage so well that you couldn’t help wanting to go with them. With elements of skunk Anansie and Jamiroquai, SoulCyde rocked the Joint”.
Steven Hughes X2 The Beat
- The Beat
" The music is melodic original and vibrant and the show inspirational". A wonderfully talented and exciting band who had a packed house eating out of their hands and begging for more”. - Sue Popper - Joogleberry Playhouse Brighton
Snug was a night of poetry and music. SoulCyde’s powerful, confident vocals filled The Whitechapel. In an era when talent is all too often superseded by hype, SoulCyde provide pure choons. They are able to switch effortlessly between soul, funk, rock and reggae. The music has a coherence, regardless of genre, due to the vocals which remain constantly good. This isn’t genre crossing for the sake of it, but a genuine desire not to be constricted by one category. - Colourtelly.tv
Discography
Discography
Hurricane: Yet to be released, Hurricane has sold 300 copies and has been charted by Genesis FM, Rhythm FM and Sweet FM radio.
Heaven Can Wait: The single has sold 170 copies over two gigs. The money was donated to Keep A Child Alive the Charity for children with HIV and AIDs,
How Is It: Has attracted much attention from professional Pluggers, White Noise and KAM Rock in the USA who want to feature the track. Feedback from UK radio has been extremely positive and it charted in the top ten of the Australian ILR play list
Good Ole Funking: Has been selected for the forth coming Afrika Bambaataa Album
Inclusive (Album): A conceptual debut album advance copies now available online at CD Baby www.soulcyde.com and Rough Trade.
Photos
Bio
Natz & Toshi met in an East London Studio back in 2001. They recall connecting with each other, sharing the feeling of a meeting from a past life. On their first meeting they spoke about their love of "real" music, sang and played for each other exchanged numbers and the rest is musical history.
Natz, proclaims her love for singing live, meeting her audience and taking the stage with Toshi. She cites Mahalia Jackson, Chaka Khan, Annie Lennox, Steve Tyler and Al Green as her vocal heroes. She is credited with writing a meaty portion of "Inclusive" their debut album.
Toshi, native to Japan has always been driven by music, he fell in love with the guitar whilst at school in leafy Suffolk. A complete music-man loving everything from Joe Satriani, George Clinton, Prince, D'Angelo and The Rolling Stones.
Their sound is described as soulful rock, although they have slipped in a couple of reggae tracks just on their debut album "inclusive" just for the hell of it. Their songs highlight addiction, misunderstandings, hope, insecurities and of course love.
Recently BBC Radio London caught the magic that is Soulcyde Live on air- they performed and watched the switchboard light up with calls from fans and well wishers. Interviewed by an impressed Geoff Schumann who stated "Soulcyde were Britain's best kept secret". This reaction was again mirrored by a later interview on BBC Southern Counties Radio where Soulcyde performed an up close and personal "Live Foyer" sessions.
Soulcyde are supporters of the charity Keep A Child Alive for whom they dedicated the proceeds from their record "Heaven Can Wait". The charity supports children who are HIV/AIDS infected.
Links
