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PRESS
Jambase - 50 Unsung Classics of the 2000s
"Most contemporary studio funk and soul albums can't hold a candle to the pillars of the '60s and '70s. There's something missing, some essential rawness or more simply, not enough attention to the details or enough chops to make things sting. With Plug & Play U.K. lions The New Mastersounds staked their claim as one of the finest purveyors of hip shaking goodness since, well, James Brown and Grant Green were new faces on the scene. It isn't work to be swept away by the wah-wah addled seduction of "Thermal Bad" or the organ splash of "Altitude," but even better, they never let things fall into a same-y pocket, varying their funkin' with smart, flexible songwriting and playing touched by a churchly fervor. Cherry female vocalist Dionne Charles ladles abundant soul into her four cuts, but even when there's not a singer the Mastersounds maintain interest with their crisp, dexterous playing and snaky, purely enjoyable tunes. In a time where far too many people think bunk like Black Eyed Peas and John Legend is soul music, The New Mastersounds are around to keep things honest and true." - Dennis Cook
Jambands.com - Ten Years On
"With Ten Years On The New Mastersounds, Britain?s best-kept-secret in funk, mark their first decade together with a dozen red hot tunes to keep you plenty warm this winter, no matter where you live. Rarely does a band come along with so fitting a name as these four Brits, and they?ve got more chops than a karate tournament. The roots of their sound draws from the greatest ?60s and ?70s funk, soul and beyond, rounded out with a confident new school coolness and originality of vision that you just can?t fake." Read the full review here.
Relix Magazine - Ten Years On Review
"From the opening speed jam "San Frantico" to the closing toe-tapper "Make Me Proud," British funk exports The New Mastersounds shine on Ten Years On. Grace Potter sits in on a nice reworking of her bluesy "Nothing But the Water" (shades of "Cold Blood") and Skerik adds horns on "Ooom." While guitarist Eddie Roberts deftly shifts between chicken-scratch funk and Wes Montgomery flourishes ("The Road to Fuji"), Joe Tatton alternates from sparkly Rhodes to soul-drenched organ ("Make Me Proud"), never missing a beat. The group even pulls off the dance-themed "Cielo and Ooom." The New Mastersounds are a revelation. - Steve Bloom"
Hole in the Bag 5 star Review
"...Hole in the Bag is a fat nugget of organs, wah-wah and clattering drums if ever there was one, and sees the band do their best Meters impression to date. So much is this the case in fact, that should Cyril Neville and co. ever hear it they'll be swearing on their mum's lives that this is a long lost cut off 1969 classic The Meters and doubtless wondering how it ever got missed off the final mix as they scratch greying afros."
(Monkeyboxing.com)
Jambase Review
"Like Fred Wesley & The New JB's, Bobby Byrd, Marva Whitney or Maceo & The Macks in their day, the Mastersounds know groove and furrow it out like hogs on truffles."
Fuji Rock Review
"It's easy to see why the Japanese crowd love them. Apart from their fabulous music and almost embarrassingly good taste, they are stylish, clean cut, highly professional and coolly retro. They're also an amiable and approachable bunch. Almost the perfect band, really. During every song, each turnaround and transition is greeted with hysterical whoops of appreciation."
Squeals of Delight
"NMS is uber-tight and as loose as good luck. Their phenomenal rhythm section (drummer Simon Allen, bassist Pete Shand) parks itself in the pocket with enormous spaces between notes into which the better dancers groove-lock. NMS arrangements are more like conspiracies, with lots of wiggle room and numerous well-timed back-to-the-Ones (that moment of familiar return) designed to produce squeals of delight. There is much to be said for spending two evenings indulging in whatever causes squeals of delight."
(Favio Snimp - Jackson Hole Underground)
BBC Radio 2
"Here's a marriage made in heaven: The New Mastersounds with Dionne Charles. (Mark Lamarr - BBC Radio Two)"
Craig Charles Funk & Soul Show
"There is a good reason why these guys are the daddies of the UK scene and it is all in this album. Soul, Afro-funk, New Orleans-Funk and one blinding piece of Soul-Jazz. Plug & Play is simply a non-stop party"
Rhapsody.com
"The New Mastersounds are an organ-heavy group from Northern England who are in love with old American boogaloo records of all stripes (jazz, soul, funk and whatever else gets you on the dancefloor). Beloved for their energetic live shows, the New Mastersounds are joined here (about half the time) by Dionne Charles, a ferocious R&B belter who triumphs on tunes like "All We Can Do" and "Looking For An Answer." While it may initially seem like the band's appeal is limited to mod-suited soul nostalgia, jam rockers, crate diggers and night clubbers will definitely dig the New Mastersounds. (Nick Dedina, Rhapsody.com)"
C.H.U.D. Atlanta Show Review
"What's amazing is how these four guys can fill a room with the tightest and most intricately delicious music with what superficially seems like nothing fancy. There's no smoke and mirrors with these boys. They're normal looking chaps with guitarist Eddie Roberts playing a big-bodied Gibson, keyboardist Joe Tatton sitting at one organ using a very limited amount of sounds, bassist Pete Shand grooving away in the background, and drummer Simon Allen doing his thing tight as anyone's business but without theatrics."
JELLY JAZZ
"A simple review: listen to the samples, marvel at the sounds within, buy the record... 10 out of 10"
BEST KEPT SECRET
"A fanciful, debonair & dashing array of remixes - like having an open air martini with James Bond on Brighton beach" - Nick Matthews
BBC
"The NMS are easily the best of the recent crop of bands for whom samplers are moribund, but valve amps provide the meaning of life."
JAMBASE
"While many would be content to crank out discs full of mere retrofunk, The New Mastersounds are not interested in re-creating the past; rather they are taking vintage sounds and attitudes and merging them with modern ideas. The result is an addictive blend that has one foot in the past, one foot in the present, and both eyes on the future."
IDJ MAGAZINE
"Leeds luminaries The New Mastersounds are known the world over for dropping explosive funk bombs. They live up to the title of this latest album (their fifth) by going that extra yard and producing tracks even more infectious and groovalicious than usual. Produced by the band?s guitarist Eddie Roberts, the crew set out their stall with the bristling title track, a deep, rhythmic tune with a classic backbeat, driving Hammond and slippery basslines. NMS show their hip-hop creds by launching into a loose-limbed cover of Roots Manuva's 'Witness'. From there on in it's a mix of Meters-style heat and their own diverse experiments, which include the splendid afro-batics of 'Hey Fela' and the psychedelic end-jam 'Paranoid'. Deft and satisfying."
24-7 MAGAZINE UK
"Without shame this reviewer holds the NMS brand of funk as the best this country has to offer. Biased? Hell yeah! The reason being that all four members have the all-important element of soul, are ridiculously talented and gig relentlessly honing their art. For classic NMS genius check 'Carrot Juice' with its fast paced drumming, grinding bass, Bob's swirling Hammond perfection and Eddie's sublime guitar work. If you're a fan, '102%' will leave you full of joy, if you're not a fan, then why the hell not? Modern soul jazz and funk at its very best."
JAMBANDS.COM
"Performed with flair and grit, and with its retro sound, Live At La Cova plays like a soul jazz and funk lover's wet dream"
The Onion
"Needless to say, the album is a full on funk monster, with the hammond taking a greater role in the proceedings. NO VOCALS, just awesome instrumentals. Stand out tracks, for me, are the latin-tinged 'Tin Drum', the speed-funk 'Ain't No Telling' (Bob is outstanding on this track!) and 'Pure'. Who's the Elvis fan? F*****G MARVELLOUS!"
Japan Times
"Much like their American counterparts Soulive, NMS know how to work tight riffs and taut melodies into wild, extended jams. Fun and funky bands aren't meant to be this sophisticated, but with NMS you get both musical maturity and a great time."
UNDERCOVER MAGAZINE
"The New Mastersounds return with another funk album of classic proportions. Be Yourself sounds like it was recorded live, with its no-messing; let-the-music-speak-for-itself production (as it would?ve been in the 70s). The tunes have a refreshing quality that don't tend to focus on one theme throughout, covering a multitude of tempos and styles including jazz, funk and soul. Whether it be the crisp, rolling drums or the intricate guitar work, and not forgetting the Booker-T style Hammond organ, it's extremely difficult to pin-point a standout instrument or musician. With that in mind one has to conclude that it's ALL GOOD. It surely won't be long before they're seen up there with the likes of Grant Green and the Meters."
Yahoo! Music
"Amazingly true to the original sound, even where they break from the formulae, as they do on the Asian guitar riffs on 'Be Yourself', they end sounding like the psychedelic soul of 'Resurrection'. It's a powerful and wonderful sound, which becomes still richer when Corinne Bailey Rae adds her fantastically earthy voice."
NIK WESTON
"The funkiest 12 ever. Seek, buy and watch your floor explode"
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