I know neo soul has been discussed a lot on the org, but I'm just curious to see which side y'all are leaning towards. Some people love neo soul while others claim it has ruined music

So what do y'all think? Love it, like it, hate it? Or does it depend on the artist?

Nope.

It's not hatred but it all sounds the same to me.

The only artist I can think of now that I still enjoy is Macy Gray

Pandurito, Spain, white

Actually, I like some of it. And some of it is sinfully boring and pretentious.

But I hate the "label" with a passion. Always have.

It could use some breaths of fresh air. How about rockin out sometimes

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

It could use some breaths of fresh air. How about rockin out sometimes

AMEN to that!

At this point, I don't mind a younger Joyce Kennedy rip-off/copycat, thats how desparate I'm

PANDURITO said:

Nope.

It's not hatred but it all sounds the same to me.

The only artist I can think of now that I still enjoy is Macy Gray

Pandurito, Spain, white

She´s probably the only "Neosoul" artist that I don´t like.

When did you become white?

Harlepolis said:

Actually, I like some of it. And some of it is sinfully boring and pretentious.

But I hate the "label" with a passion. Always have.

I don´t like the term either but I also find it ridiculous how strongly some artists deny being "Neosoul" artists.

However, I think one good thing about that label is that it helps to separate some of the more heartfelt music from overly generic stuff.

I still like D´Angelo and still believe in him (though the latest audio clip sounded too weird for my taste), I still like Erykah Badu and will probably always buy her albums and go to her shows but her last two albums were not as cohesive and memorable as Mama´s Gun or Worldwide Underground, and her songs sound a tad too uneven and demolike these days.

Bilal is cool but I can´t really listen to and enjoy an album by him from start to end, same with most of the other socalled Neosoul artists.

I have totally lost interest in Jill Scott, and I really, really liked her first two albums but she takes herself waaaaay too seriously....hope Erykah Badu will slow down in that department.

KoolEaze said:

Harlepolis said:

Actually, I like some of it. And some of it is sinfully boring and pretentious.

But I hate the "label" with a passion. Always have.

I don´t like the term either but I also find it ridiculous how strongly some artists deny being "Neosoul" artists.

I don't blame artists for disassociating themselves from ANY label, esp one that was created solely for marketing purposes. It hinders their attempt of any future plans of expanding their musical grounds.

And beside, I'm pretty sure their bullshit radar went off the wall when they 1st heard the term There's absloutly NOTHING "neo" about their kind of "soul" music, everything is and was a rerun to Marvin, Al Green, Stevie, Aretha, Donny and all of people they drew their influences from. So, its kinda smart to me that they disowned the term.

I like neo soul, but then again Maxwell is really the only neo soul artist I listen to on a regular basis.

Neo Soul is very incomplete.

It's like someone warming up on the piano to write a song but they don't actually get around to writing the song.

KoolEaze said:

PANDURITO said:

Nope.

It's not hatred but it all sounds the same to me.

The only artist I can think of now that I still enjoy is Macy Gray

Pandurito, Spain, white

She´s probably the only "Neosoul" artist that I don´t like.

When did you become white?

I was born that way. Don't judge me

I love most of it.... just hearing black people embrace live instrumentation and actually singing about real shit as oppose to their mainstream counterparts is refreshing.

Macy Gray is fucking awful.

So neither of you like Macy, but who do you like?

What are the top artists in the genre you DO like?

I like some of it but for the most part if I want to hear soul music I'll stick with the '60s and '70s. There's some great new music being made but for the most part it pales when commpared to real soul music.

Hate the tag but love quite a few artists who come under that so called genre, to be honest r&b is so dead right now the only saving grace are the releases from the few artists who come under that tag.

When it's good.......very yes.

PANDURITO said:

KoolEaze said:

She´s probably the only "Neosoul" artist that I don´t like.

When did you become white?

I was born that way. Don't judge me

No, you weren´t. The org made you white.

Fuck Neosoul man, I created a thread about Iberosoul. Been listening to Paco De Lucia since last night NONSTOP....that man´s music has healing powers.

And no, I´m not judging you....I´d be the LAST one to judge you.In fact, I think you´re quite cool, and I don´t really get why some orgers who are very dear to me can´t seem to get along with you...but that´s between you and them. I dig your weird humor..a lot.

Don´t you like Maxwell, D´Angelo or Raphael Saadiq?

i like these songs by duffy and adele

im not sure about the voices being great but yeah the songs are nice

http://www.youtube.com/wa...FjF64Mcaao

http://www.youtube.com/wa...GwH-x4VoH8

Harlepolis said:

Actually, I like some of it. And some of it is sinfully boring and pretentious.

But I hate the "label" with a passion. Always have.

God, yes. That's the aspect of it that irks me, too.

I have to admit, though, that around the time that the first D'Angelo and Badu albums came out, it all felt like a breath of fresh air. (Well, maybe not 'fresh' air, per se. More like the air in a basement bar renovated to look kind of like an old jazz club, filled with incense and aromatic oils, making it all feel terribly good for you, when, really, you kind of hoped to be hit in the face by the funky scent of weed and bodies in motion. Pleasant, in its own way, though.)

deebee said:

Harlepolis said:

Actually, I like some of it. And some of it is sinfully boring and pretentious.

But I hate the "label" with a passion. Always have.

God, yes. That's the aspect of it that irks me, too.

I have to admit, though, that around the time that the first D'Angelo and Badu albums came out, it all felt like a breath of fresh air. (Well, maybe not 'fresh' air, per se. More like the air in a basement bar renovated to look kind of like an old jazz club, filled with incense and aromatic oils, making it all feel terribly good for you, when, really, you kind of hoped to be hit in the face by the funky scent of weed and bodies in motion. Pleasant, in its own way, though.)

Exactly how I feel about it. Very pretentious. And that is my main reason why I stopped buying Jill Scott´s CDs and why I feel less enthusiastic about Erykah Badu or Angie Stone these days.

They take themselves a tad too seriously and rely way too much on the past...and it is not even really THEIR past. I liked all of them much more when they recycled less.....and talked less during shows.

Sometimes they act like they´re "in the know" about things that they actually know very little about, especially Erykah Badu. Luckily she´s changed a bit in that respect.

I still like most of the artists in this thread but, unfortunately, they all seem to burn out much faster than most of their heroes from the past.

Boring

KoolEaze said:

deebee said:

God, yes. That's the aspect of it that irks me, too.

I have to admit, though, that around the time that the first D'Angelo and Badu albums came out, it all felt like a breath of fresh air. (Well, maybe not 'fresh' air, per se. More like the air in a basement bar renovated to look kind of like an old jazz club, filled with incense and aromatic oils, making it all feel terribly good for you, when, really, you kind of hoped to be hit in the face by the funky scent of weed and bodies in motion. Pleasant, in its own way, though.)

Exactly how I feel about it. Very pretentious. And that is my main reason why I stopped buying Jill Scott´s CDs and why I feel less enthusiastic about Erykah Badu or Angie Stone these days.

They take themselves a tad too seriously and rely way too much on the past...and it is not even really THEIR past. I liked all of them much more when they recycled less.....and talked less during shows.

Sometimes they act like they´re "in the know" about things that they actually know very little about, especially Erykah Badu. Luckily she´s changed a bit in that respect.

I still like most of the artists in this thread but, unfortunately, they all seem to burn out much faster than most of their heroes from the past.

I think Angie & Erykah have changed gradually since the releases of their debuts. And to me, I think they take themselves way less seriously now as opposed to Jill "Holier Than Thou" Scott. I love how Erykah keeps tackling new grounds(maybe not NEW according to the avid music listener, but new to her musical experience and it does seem sincere from where I'm sitting, IDK).

But I swear, no matter how HARD I try to give that woman(Jill) the benifit of the doubt. She says something in her interviews that throw me off the loop altogether, and yes, I would've chalked it up gladly had her music not been so damn "coma friendly".

What did Cinnie said once about her lyrics? Oh yeah, "Twitter updates". Thats exactly how they sound to me. But it seems that different things trigger different people's emotions, I guess it all boils down to personal taste.

Harlepolis said:

KoolEaze said:

Exactly how I feel about it. Very pretentious. And that is my main reason why I stopped buying Jill Scott´s CDs and why I feel less enthusiastic about Erykah Badu or Angie Stone these days.

They take themselves a tad too seriously and rely way too much on the past...and it is not even really THEIR past. I liked all of them much more when they recycled less.....and talked less during shows.

Sometimes they act like they´re "in the know" about things that they actually know very little about, especially Erykah Badu. Luckily she´s changed a bit in that respect.

I still like most of the artists in this thread but, unfortunately, they all seem to burn out much faster than most of their heroes from the past.

I think Angie & Erykah have changed gradually since the releases of their debuts. And to me, I think they take themselves way less seriously now as opposed to Jill "Holier Than Thou" Scott. I love how Erykah keeps tackling new grounds(maybe not NEW according to the avid music listener, but new to her musical experience and it does seem sincere from where I'm sitting, IDK).

But I swear, no matter how HARD I try to give that woman(Jill) the benifit of the doubt. She says something in her interviews that throw me off the loop altogether, and yes, I would've chalked it up gladly had her music not been so damn "coma friendly".

What did Cinnie said once about her lyrics? Oh yeah, "Twitter updates". Thats exactly how they sound to me. But it seems that different things trigger different people's emotions, I guess it all boils down to personal taste.

Wow.. ! PunkMistress said similar things in the GD forum. Funny and on point..and believe me, I REALLY used to like Jill Scott´s music.

You´re right about Erykah....maybe it´s because of her kids, who knows...or maybe her new friend is good for her (Jay Electronic).

Still, she´s improved in one field ( i.e she´s less egocentric and pretentious and more accessible), yet lost a bit in another field ( her music is a tad too sketchy for me, the lyrics are not what they used to be).

But I will keep buying everything she releases no matter what. I really like her.

Change is good, and especially when it comes to art, but....why change something sooo drastically when you know that that´s the reason why people fell in love with your music in the first place?

I´m thinking more of Maxwell here than Badu, I mean, Urban Hang Suite was THAT good, why not stick with Matthewman for a while and release something similarly great. I love Maxwell´s first two albums, UHS and Embrya, but he kinda lost me after I bought Now.

Is the new one any good?

KoolEaze said:

Harlepolis said:

I think Angie & Erykah have changed gradually since the releases of their debuts. And to me, I think they take themselves way less seriously now as opposed to Jill "Holier Than Thou" Scott. I love how Erykah keeps tackling new grounds(maybe not NEW according to the avid music listener, but new to her musical experience and it does seem sincere from where I'm sitting, IDK).

But I swear, no matter how HARD I try to give that woman(Jill) the benifit of the doubt. She says something in her interviews that throw me off the loop altogether, and yes, I would've chalked it up gladly had her music not been so damn "coma friendly".

What did Cinnie said once about her lyrics? Oh yeah, "Twitter updates". Thats exactly how they sound to me. But it seems that different things trigger different people's emotions, I guess it all boils down to personal taste.

Wow.. ! PunkMistress said similar things in the GD forum. Funny and on point..and believe me, I REALLY used to like Jill Scott´s music.

You´re right about Erykah....maybe it´s because of her kids, who knows...or maybe her new friend is good for her (Jay Electronic).

Still, she´s improved in one field ( i.e she´s less egocentric and pretentious and more accessible), yet lost a bit in another field ( her music is a tad too sketchy for me, the lyrics are not what they used to be).

But I will keep buying everything she releases no matter what. I really like her.

Change is good, and especially when it comes to art, but....why change something sooo drastically when you know that that´s the reason why people fell in love with your music in the first place?

I´m thinking more of Maxwell here than Badu, I mean, Urban Hang Suite was THAT good, why not stick with Matthewman for a while and release something similarly great. I love Maxwell´s first two albums, UHS and Embrya, but he kinda lost me after I bought Now.

Is the new one any good?

If you're expecting a follow up to those albums, you might be disappointed. I prefer this over "Now", its a bit darker(but all the better for me). Give it a try, you might be pleasantly surprised. I'm still upset about how Columbia altered the album's original theme in order to jeopardize his female fan-base, it would've been more adventurous and courageous from him had he fought for the original format to be released. But its still a good album.

As for the drastic change argument, I actually don't mind it as long its ginuine and not just for the sake of, because they would end up sounding forced and completely out of place.

If Maxwell, Anthony Hamilton and D'Angleo are neo-soul, then I guess I like some of it.

Harlepolis said:

KoolEaze said:

Exactly how I feel about it. Very pretentious. And that is my main reason why I stopped buying Jill Scott´s CDs and why I feel less enthusiastic about Erykah Badu or Angie Stone these days.

They take themselves a tad too seriously and rely way too much on the past...and it is not even really THEIR past. I liked all of them much more when they recycled less.....and talked less during shows.

Sometimes they act like they´re "in the know" about things that they actually know very little about, especially Erykah Badu. Luckily she´s changed a bit in that respect.

I still like most of the artists in this thread but, unfortunately, they all seem to burn out much faster than most of their heroes from the past.

I think Angie & Erykah have changed gradually since the releases of their debuts. And to me, I think they take themselves way less seriously now as opposed to Jill "Holier Than Thou" Scott. I love how Erykah keeps tackling new grounds(maybe not NEW according to the avid music listener, but new to her musical experience and it does seem sincere from where I'm sitting, IDK).

But I swear, no matter how HARD I try to give that woman(Jill) the benifit of the doubt. She says something in her interviews that throw me off the loop altogether, and yes, I would've chalked it up gladly had her music not been so damn "coma friendly".

What did Cinnie said once about her lyrics? Oh yeah, "Twitter updates". Thats exactly how they sound to me. But it seems that different things trigger different people's emotions, I guess it all boils down to personal taste.

Well I'm glad I don't listen to her interviews I dig Jill. I get the criticism but when she hits it, she hits right. at least for me. Until she calls me whitey devil, I'll continue to support her

Yes.

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

Harlepolis said:

I think Angie & Erykah have changed gradually since the releases of their debuts. And to me, I think they take themselves way less seriously now as opposed to Jill "Holier Than Thou" Scott. I love how Erykah keeps tackling new grounds(maybe not NEW according to the avid music listener, but new to her musical experience and it does seem sincere from where I'm sitting, IDK).

But I swear, no matter how HARD I try to give that woman(Jill) the benifit of the doubt. She says something in her interviews that throw me off the loop altogether, and yes, I would've chalked it up gladly had her music not been so damn "coma friendly".

What did Cinnie said once about her lyrics? Oh yeah, "Twitter updates". Thats exactly how they sound to me. But it seems that different things trigger different people's emotions, I guess it all boils down to personal taste.

Well I'm glad I don't listen to her interviews I dig Jill. I get the criticism but when she hits it, she hits right. at least for me. Until she calls me whitey devil, I'll continue to support her

My sister dragged me to one of her concerts back in 2007, I'll tell you no lie, I took THEE best nap of my life in these two hours

On the other hand, she came through like a rockett when she performed a poem and let each memeber of the band improvise during her set.

I love it.

Hell naw. I hate it damn near as much as I hate shit hop.

I can't stand smooth laid back "soothing" music. It sounds like music for a more elite highfalutin crowd who have a good time just sitting around "listening" to or "appreciating" music and maybe discussing how artsy it may sound or how such and such person is such a "talented vocalist". It's like they just forget or don't care that it's boring as hell just because such and such person may be a "talented vocalist". Neo stool is just as boring as shit hop but it's praised more because it may have a "talented vocalist" or "talented saxophone player" or whatever other "talented player" may be in the group.

You could easily have it on at work, hear playing in the grocery store, or hear it playing anywhere and just go on about your business and concentrate on what you are doing because it's easy for it to be background music. Well, all the music I've ever loved is music that cannot be ignored when it's in the background. If I throw on some funk, disco, house, etc. at work, I wouldn't be able to concentrate on my work because I would be too busy paying attention to the music and my ass would automatically be wanting to move in my chair. The same with the grocery store. If I'm in there and they play a good song, I always end up leaving without particular items because I couldn't concentrate while I was shopping for concentrating on the song playing. The same thing goes with slow jams. I only like slow jams that put you in the mood to do some filthy unnatural thangs. I don't like anything slow that was made simply to "listen to" or "admire how talented the vocalist is". Fuck that! I listen to music to have a good time and I could give less than a damn about how talented the vocalist is, or the horn player, or the guitar player. All that talent don't mean shit if it's put to use on something boring as hell. Just listen to how great "Nasty Girl" sounds and Vanity can't sing a damn lick. That's because the music is kickin'.

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[Edited 7/16/10 12:06pm]