Kitchener born R and B band Soulstack have the soles of their feet firmly planted in the sounds of ’60s style STAX Records soul with their sophomore CD ‘Five Finger Discount.’
As expected there is a lot of ’60s style soul and R and B music featuring excellent vocal harmonies and a whole lot of soul right from the first track ‘Long Way Down.’
But, in part thanks to gorgeous organ and electric piano, they also delve into more ’70s roots rock along the lines of the Band on tracks like ‘Not the Only One’ and ‘Fold Up Your Heart.’
That organ is addictive and those vocal harmonies are to die for.
Lead vocalist/ guitarist Jonathan Knight’s appealing tenor vocals sound like a mix of Steve Marriner of Monkey Junk and Blind Melon‘s Shannon Hoon, with massive doses of ’60s soul and R and B and a smattering of gospel mixed in.
The vocal harmonies give a gospel feel to ‘Warm Bed To Sleep On’ which stands out.
I also love the shuffle of ‘Hangin’ In The Kitchen.’
They slow things down for several tracks after that, but throughout the organ and keyboards make this CD an enjoyable listen, which is always supplemented by tasteful guitars.
They pick up the tempo on ‘Living Room,” which begins with a guitar riff reminiscent of the Beatles’ ‘Day Tripper.’
They end their CD with another gospel tinged number — a live version of ‘This My Be The Last Time,’ on which Jon Knight shows how well he can belt out the soul.
Band: Soulstack
Genre: blues/ soul
