ZWEI "2'sday" BolaMarge 


It's not hard to enjoy Zwei's new CD "2'sday," given its endless neo-soul grooves and crooning harmonies, but first you have to get past the opening (and title) track. Unspooling like the credits at the end of a film, it ends with a long shout-out to all supporters of the group, including family, friends, artists and media outlets. If Zwei wins a Wammie for "2'sday," any acceptance speech is likely to be redundant.

Fortunately, Zwei then gets down to business, evoking all manner of old school, new school and blue-eyed school soul stylings. A series of multi-tracked R&B seductions ensue, featuring Maryland-bred singer-songwriters Reg Jones and Kuti Mack. 

The duo wears its influences proudly -- Prince, Marvin Gaye and Hall and Oates loom large here -- but there's also a strong contemporary hometown vibe evident on "U St. Blues," "Moon Over U" and other tracks that keep Zwei's take on soul/funk music from sounding routine or strictly retro. At its best -- on "Remedy," "Alone" and "Souled Out," for example -- the duo's songwriting is smart and the tracks are awash with layered lead vocals, sweet harmonies, moody electric keyboards and tugging rhythms. "Wish I Wasn't 'Bout . . . It" has all that and more -- an amusing lyric and a nearly hypnotic beat. In fact, though a modest and not entirely filler-free production, "2'sday" has something a lot of soul music lacks these days: personality to spare.
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Sometimes you find new music and talent in the strangest places. We went to Borders White Flint to get some coffee. Instead we listened to two entertainers squeezed between the bookshelves on the third floor. No matter, they rocked the house. 

Original songs, a mix of old school, hip hop, jazz and rock, hooked us. Grab their two CDs and get ready to be treated to music from the past and from the soul. Here are two young men that care about the past, and the future.  Support them at local gigs. Check 'em out.
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