Incognito – Amplified Soul

If you’re an aficionado of the jazz-funk genre, chances are you’ll be aware of Incognito and their gift of being able to fabricate smooth and funky summertime tunes. So needless to say, their new album Amplified Soul is no exception, and will take you on an elated journey that you’ll never want to end.

A myriad of light and blissful songs, the album’s most gratifying offerings are Rapture, Hats (Make Me Wanna Holler) and Silver Shadow, all of which invoke joyous images and have the ability to just make you want to smile – a principle the band are highly familiar with. This could be construed as lacking depth and imagination, but when a group achieve something so remarkable, why experiment and risk ruining it?

Other stand-out tracks are I See the Sun and Deeper Still, which may not be initial favourites but will assuredly grow on you the more they grace your ears. Not a bad remark can be made about the remaining material:it is predictable but refined, and demonstrates the group’s innate talent and diligence.

It is uplifting to be a bystander to a band who, after 35 years, still haven’t lost their lustre and groove due their identifiable sound and ability to produce distinctive music without it sounding repetitive or monotonous. With Amplified Soul there is no auto-tune and no modern cheat tactics in sight – just pure, wholesome, underrated flair. What more could you ask for in an industry where music is so often machine-manufactured? Though unfortunately the hype for jazz-funk is waning rapidly, if anyone can change that it will be Incognito and their release of this satisfyingly jovial collection of songs.

Keira Trethowan

Amplified Soul was released on 13^th May 2014. For further information or to order the album visit Incognito’s website here.

Watch the video for Silver Shadow here: