Although some might scoff at the idea of a contemporary artist returning to the sound of vintage labels such as Motown, Cadet, Stax and Atlantic, this record is so absurdly good that it would just be plain churlish not to get extremely excited about it.  Married to Finnish jazz and techno legend Jimi Tenor and performing with one of Northern Europe’s most respected funk bands, Nicole Willis does have a small advantage but she also has one of the most powerful, emotive voices around right now not to mention the lyrical and musical talent to back it up.  Yup, all the key elements are here, blended together in one divine package to create musical gold dust.  And, quite frankly, at a time when just about anything can dent the charts provided it’s palatable enough, the only thing stopping Nicole Willis going straight to the top is the lack of a proper marketing budget.  Stranger things have happened before and Keep Reachin Up has got ‘future classic’ plastered all over it.

(hobbes)