This Is One Great Jazz Fusion and Soul Album!
author: Bruce Von Stiers
Groovin' Soul Live...I get quite a bit of material to review from Kari-On Productions. Even though just about all of the albums Kari sends me are good, a few really stand out. One such album is from a group known as Gemini Soul. Gemini Soul provides an eclectic mix of jazz, soul and fusion that fans just eat up..."Live : The Liquid Soul Tour" is one great jazz fusion and soul album...Gemini Soul has included the song "Fever" on this album. And I'm glad they did. There is some very, very good bass. And the piano and percussion is excellent as well..."Pandora's Boxx - 07 Remix" has some interesting fusion and alt jazz movements. Once the groove sets in, you get a toe tapping, hip swaying beat...I had never heard of Gemini Soul before receiving this album. But I am now a fan for life. Their mix of jazz, fusion and soul is not to be missed. ~ Bruce Von Stiers (www.bvsreviews.com - May 2008)
Read more...
Masters At Their Respective Instruments!
author: TheChickenFishSpeaks.com
Gemini Soul is a jazz/soul band, that I swear sounds like they are straight out of the 70's. However, they are modern and masters at their respective instruments...The bass playing is smooth and graceful weaving intricate melodies with nimble key work of the keyboardist. Keeping it all together and supplying a nice smooth base is the percussionist. I really enjoyed listening to them after I had an especially hard day at work... ~ Grog Mutant (www.TheChickenFishSpeaks.com - January 2008)
Read more...
Sweet Jazzy Funk!
author: OsPlaceJazz.com
These guys have a sweet jazzy funk that reminds us of Ramsey Lewis on the opener "Gypsy." Bassist Andre Marcel Ajamu Akinyele plucks, and walks his bass generating a lot of sizzle and pop...All of the songs have a cool swagger especially "LiLi," "Ancestor's Dub" and "In The Mood." These tunes will get your head bobbing and feet patting to their groove! ~ D. Oscar Groomes (www.OsPlaceJazz.com - January 2008)
Read more...
Groove Driven, Retro Tinged, Piece of Work!
author: SmoothJazzTherapy.com
Andre Marcel Ajamu Akinyele, Jon O'Bergh and Andrew Foster are, together, Gemini Soul. With their album "The Liquid Soul Tour"...they have produced a groove driven, retro tinged, piece of work that shuns current contemporary jazz formula in favour of something altogether edgier. With the bass of Akinyele often evoking images of Stanley Clarke, some other influences that the trio share are crystallized in the form of Sade's "Hang On To Your Love," which serves as an ideal vehicle for the bands tight brand of jazz funk, and with Dave Brubeck's "Take 5." Actually Gemini Soul take a little longer than "5," eight whole minutes in fact, to expand their special interpretation of this enduring classic and, in doing so, demonstrate a penchant for allowing a track to build over time. The rhythmically rich "Gypsy" is a seven minute delight while the band takes a further minute to develop the intricate "Pandora's Boxx." Best of all in this respect is a knockout nine minutes worth of all the rhythm and groove you will ever need in the shape of the breathtaking "Supernova." Throughout, with Foster's percussion never anything short of significant, its all about the vibe and this is particularly so with the sparse and rhythmic "Ancestor's Dub." The bands stunning take on the familiar "Fever" sits nicely with the claustrophobic intensity of "Lili." It's a cut that builds then build some more and proves that great jazz funk doesn't need to be of the "in your face" variety. The beauty of Gemini Soul is that they always remain totally in control and this enables them bestow great sensitivity on the music that they play. They do this to perfection with the jazzy and accessible "Winter" that beautifully fuses the contemporary with the classic and again for "Goodbye" which, although mellow, is nevertheless underpinned by a significant beat. "In The Mood" is even more tranquil and, with hugely attractive keys from O'Bergh, is arguably the albums standout track yet right there with it is the warm and comforting "Lake Merritt." This is a tune that "out Brubecks" Brubeck and is in every respect a wonderful show case for the bands work. As contemporary jazz seeks a new direction "The Liquid Soul Tour" may well signpost the way. Since the recording of the album Gemini Soul have added drummer Alex Marks to the line-up and are certainly set to go from strength to strength. ~ Dennis Poole (www.smoothjazztherapy.com - January 2008)
Read more...