KIWANUKA

just couldn't get into it. great singing

This record popped up and elicited massive disappointment from me. “Oh, barf, this is gonna be some dogshit soul or world beats record,” I thought. And, I guess it sort of is, but I’m actually happy to report that my initial reaction was way off-base. This is actually a pretty solid record, and good music transcends genre sometimes. I might actually circle back and listen to this one again. 8/10

I see you black soul man, never heard of you before but a 2019 soul album has me excited Oooooo funky You ain't the problem Rolling!!!!! (Dude that transition was incredible into the next song) Ive been dazed!!! Hero Pretty!!! Not bad, I enjoyed this. It seemed a bit loud? And there were some duds but otherwise good!

Another great surprise! I was aware of Kiwanuka and the album because of Mercury prize but never actually listened to it. The album is gorgeous, there is a cohesive sound from beginning to end despite all the various influences that he plays effortlessly. Hero and Solid Ground are some of my favourite songs and, again, makes me want to listen to more of his songs. Great to know we have a contemporary great artist like this. It is normally not on the mainstream, though. 4/5

Very 2010s but I enjoyed it quite a bit

Nice. Could have come from the 70s or something. Soulful, warm. Drippy guitar reverb, big show drums, rich vocals. I'm feeling generous today so it can have a strong 3.5

Didn’t listen

I really enjoyed the last song, the other songs not so much.

Smooth and groovy. I love the guitar and strings

Really nice singing. Psychedelic soul is a very interesting genre. It doesnt sound like an album that came out in 2019. 3.6/5 Favorite Songs: Rolling I've Been Dazed Piano Joint (This Kind Of Love) Hero Hard To Say Goodbye Light

Didn't enjoy this one as much as I feel like I should have

Oh hell yea. I love everything about this album. The muddy guitars, the pared back drumming, and that voice. God damn. It felt like someone was hugging my soul the whole way through.

Album #242: Michael Kiwanuka – KIWANUKA ⭐⭐⭐⭐ A real journey of an album, this one. Beautifully sung by Michael Kiwanuka in an understated but powerful tone. He’s a good singer. There’s nothing particularly flashy about him, but he’s very versatile throughout this album. My favourite thing about this record is the production. It feels like a homage to old soul, progressive soul and psychedelic soul music. There’s this muddy, low-end ambience to it. You get the odd bum note on the guitars here and there. It’s rough, it’s not pristine, and it has this almost analogue ceiling to the sound. When the strings come in and things start to peak into the red on the VU meter, you get this lovely distortion in the high end alongside that muddy low end. It just feels very authentic, like a record that’s 60 years old, even though it came out only a few years ago. I really like that about it. I think the songwriting is pretty good, too. I love the guitar tone throughout, and I like the somewhat unexpected turns some of them take. The only pitfall for me, and this is based on an initial listen, so perhaps I’m missing something, is that I found the lyrics fairly basic. Nothing really stood out to me. I don’t think lyrics are his strongest suit. He’s got a lot of strings to his bow, but I don’t think that’s one of them. As a listening experience, though, this is a great album, and I’ll definitely be checking out more from this guy going forward.

absolutely adore his voice, few standout songs

Album length - medium Memorable songs/melodies - solid ground, living in denial, hero, you aint the problem, piano joint, light Added to my music library - no Other remarks - I prefer love and hate as my favorite album of his (added to my library)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Soul-Rock. Riktigt bra album. Saknar dock spår som riktigt står ut förutom kanske Hero. Dock är låtlistan väldigt jämn och det finns inga dåliga spår, hela albumet har intressant och varierande produktion samtidigt som det är konsekvent och Michael har väldigt bra röst. Ett fantastiskt album att sätta på och bara försvinna in in den flytande, drömska produktionen, det får bli en 5a. Bäst är Rolling, Piano Joint, Hero, Solid ground, Light

Te coge demasiado de la mano, tiene texturas interesantes y divertidas pero no siento que reclame mi atención

Know Michael from some of his features but never listened to his solo work. Great modern album even with some awkward interludes. Will definitely be checking out some of his other work after this.

- I’ve Been Dazed is nagyon szep

Favourite Songs: Rolling I've Been Dazed Hero

Very enjoyable album

This is the kind of album that I have been looking for.

Not what I expected, enjoyable listen.

Enjoyed this and will listen to it again. I could see myself giving this five stars in the future if I continue to like it.

Loved the psych rock/soul combo. Shocked I haven't heard more from this artist. He's right up my alley Favorite Songs: Rolling, Piano Joint, Solid Ground

Mellow and chill, I like it!

Chill, modern soul music. Great stuff!

I'm not up on a lot of modern soul stuff. Perhaps I should be.

I wasn't sure what to expect going into this album, but I came away pleasantly surprised. There's a lot to appreciate, with an interesting blend of psychedelic rock and soul. I kept hearing shades of Traffic, the Beatles, and especially Broken Bells, which makes sense given Danger Mouse's involvement. Not every song held my attention, but there were enough interesting moments and a few genuine standouts to make me want to give the album another listen. This feels like one that could grow on me with time.

Has a '60s cocktail music feel to it. Got a little repetitive by the end, but not enough to condemn it.

Echt, als de 1001 lijst hit, dan hit ie GOED. Zoveel goede albums de afgelopen tijd gekregen en nu een album van Michael Kiwanuka? Die verantwoordelijk is voor Small changes, een van mn favoriete albums van de laatste jaren? Dit album is iets minder soulvol dan Small Changes, het is wat meer psychedelisch? Met vreemde samples en spacey geluiden. Maakt het absoluut niet minder mooi, en wat heeft Kiwanuka toch een fantastische stem... Het is psychedelisch, soulvol, toch ook een beetje rockig met de gitaren en de lange solos... Dit is echt een wegdroom album, eentje die ik nog heel vaak ga luisteren. Is het beter dan Small Changes? Misschien wel, zeker weet ik wel dat dit een fantastisch album is en eentje die ik nog heel vaak ga luisteren. Sterker nog, ik zet m nog een keer aan, ogen dicht en genieten. Wat een album. FAVO: You ain't the problem, I've been dazed, Piano Joint, Final Days, Light

I really enjoyed this much more than I expected. It started out not clicking but a few songs in and I was hooked.

muito bom album, ja conhecia o artista e uma das musicas, gostei bastante

Occasionally interesting, mostly not. The lyrics are drivel. So much craft in things retro is better suited to furniture than music.

Lovely, smooth album - stays interesting - 5/5

Production is very nice. You Aint The Problem and Piano Joint are my top 2 songs

my mother loves him and i’ve seen him in concert so i was aware of him before i think i would give it a 3.5 if i could and he has such a lovely voice and i love the concept of the album

An unexpected delight

Agradable sorpresa para ser un album del 2019

Michael K er en dyktig musiker. Synes første halvdel er litt lite minneverdig, men andre halvdel er sterk og sikrer en litt tynn 4er

OK som jobbmusikk, men ingen spesielle høydepunker så da blir det vel 3 da?

Klinker til med min andre 5er på Kiwanuka på første lytt. Hadde aldri hørt om Michael Kiwanuka før, men dette digget jeg. Mange fete hooks (hvis det heter det) og rå gitarspilling. Hero og You Ain't The Problem er favoritter. "Nananana" på Living In Denial går igjen i huset her nå.

Megabra! Aldri hørt om fyren før, men dette gav meg samme følelse som Jungle på PIP. Nå er alle 1-2-albumene verdt tiden. Skal høre masse på MK videre. Ikke en soleklar 5, og overraskelsesfaktoren bikker nok noe opp, men gøy gøy gøy.

Liker det godt, selv med noen litt kjedeligere perioder. Har hørt ganske mye på MK, og hvis dere liker sounden kan jeg anbefale albumet hans «Love & Hate», som er beda bedre imo!

Hadn't heard this one before. Seems to deserve more deeper listening than I can give it now. Very sweet, melodic.

I haven’t heard of this artist. I don’t know what his music is like. First of all, the vocals aren’t very good. This is an experimental album. Of course, it has the dreaded drum machine. Some of the songs are quite catchy. Also, there is some nice guitar on the album. The instrumentation is quite sparse. Overall, this is an average album. Three stars.

Extremely well-produced album, but what else do you expect from Danger Mouse? It gets a high 4

This was an amazing album, a really wonderful listening. I dont have any specific examples that stuck out as I typically do my first listen blind and dont look at my phone as I just let the album transport me (the first listen IS very important) but on future listens I can see this easily going from a strong four to a hearty five.

5 stars - A really solid and entertaining album

Modern soul and r&b that drinks from the original sources as a base to create its own sound. It has delightful psychedelic undertones.

2.5

3.0

Michael Kiwanuka (his parents are from Uganda) is an English singer and songwriter. This album is quite recent (2019), and the music is a bit different, so perhaps that’s why it made the list. The album is well done and good quality, and Michael’s singing is fine. Most of the tracks are forgettable, though his lyrics are good.

I haven't heard this one, but apparently it's one of The Economist's "best albums of 2019". Well, in that case! In fact, it sounds much older than 2019, which is probably by design. But crucially with good sound quality. There is bass. There are strings. There are fantasy-esque background vocals. Maybe the Economist is on to something. This is definitely a good album - above average - but for some reason I don't think I'd listen to it (thus, not a 4). I think because it's so even -- there's no crescendos or hooks really. Would make for great soundtrack music. Highlight: 'I've Been Dazed'

You Ain't the Problem - 4.5/5 Rolling - 4/5 I've Been Dazed - 4/5 Piano Joint (This Kind of Love) (Intro) - 3.5/5 Piano Joint (This Kind of Love) - 4.5/5 Another Human Being - 3.5/5 Living in Denial - 4/5 Hero (Intro) - 3.5/5 Hero - 4.5/5 Hard to Say Goodbye - 4/5 Final Days - 4/5 Interlude (Loving the People) - 3.5/5 Solid Ground - 4/5 Light - 4.5/5 It's incredible to see how this can mesh so many genres together and yet not really have a distinct classification. It's got a bit of psychedelia, a bit of soul, a bit of jazz, and yet Kiwanuka has a distinct style that it all meshes together well for the final product. A great surprise to find out about. Overall: 4/5 Favorites: You Ain't the Problem, Piano Joint (This Kind of Love), Hero, Light

This is very good Soulful.

great african soul artistry

Really great voice. Beautiful and soulful, a little psychedelic, rocking, jazzy, spacey. This album really has so much going for it. First listen is just a 4 but I think this will grow into a classic for me over time.

It's preposterous how Michael Kiwanuka is on this list with what's probably his third-best album and not his best album. I'd argue that both his debut and sophomore records are better than his eponymous effort, which doesn't make KIWANUKA unworthy of being on the list, but it's disappointing. I'm obviously a fan, so take this with a grain of salt, but if you thought there was something missing here, go explore this dude's discography, it's worth it. 4/5 because he DID better, c'mon!

Fine!

Not my favourite of his, but still a 5

All of Kiwanuka's albums are incredible. It's crazy to me that he isn't a HUGE star.

HOLY SHIT

Well, I was expecting to hate this. Caught a bit of him at Glastonbury about ten years ago and immediately wrote him off. Either, 1) I heard him on a bad day, 2) my musical tastes have broadened considerably or 3) I was hammered. Possibly a combination of the lot. Anyways… I really really enjoyed this. A great voice, great variety in the tracks and just a really well put together album. Apologies Michael, I will try to make up for ten years of ignoring you.

i need to start tuning in to newer albums outside of my usual bubble, this was lovely! so textured and well crafted

Bel sound me gusta

smooth, comforting. Robyn liked it

Love this album and it's so easy to listen to! Wikipedia lists it's genre as Psychedelic soul and I'm now a fan!

it js felt so resonating and so enjoyable!

Really enjoyable vibe, great driving/background music

This was a great find! Had never heard of and had no idea what I was in for. Very chill vibe that I wouldn't even know how to classify. Dig it!

Yllättävän hyvää tuollaista soul, R&B tyyppistä kokeilevaa musiikkia paikoin.

This was a really enjoyable album, mostly smooth but with a few experimental hints that I enjoyed.

Ya know what sometimes it's good to just lean into a record like this where it's very much leaning on classic soul and imitating the 70s but doing it so well that you're just like, yeah this is great and really nice to listen to and his voice is lovely. Especially when you're a bit tired and hungover.

A little souls-y, blues-y, rock-y; a very entrancing record.

Det lyder fandme bare nice.

Kendte det ikke, men det var en positiv overraskelse. Rigtig fint album, det kunne godt tåle et par gennemlytninger mere 4.0

Generelt ret fedt. Ikke det hele der står lige stærkt men heller ikke noget dårligt i mellem. Højt niveau hele vejen igennem. Trækker op at jeg lige har fundet ud af, at Hero er det sidste nummer i The Lanterns serien. Begge er røv fede.

Never heard this artists. Really dug this album. I'm a fan now.

New to this, interesting. Could do with additional listens.

This is on me, but I find it very tough to place this very nice sounding album somewhere. I get confused at times when listening about what it is. It therefore somehow places just middle of the road for me. 3/5

Like surprisingly amazing, never heard of him but I need this on vinyl and need to listen to more of Kiwanuka

Proggy, nicely weird and soulful I like it

It's good to hear a recent album that is definitely designed to be heard straight through, and this was a really good listen. I see a lot of clear influences being mentioned here - Curtis Mayfield, Bill Withers, bits of Hendrix. I think we can add Bobby Womack to that mix as well

Love to see this here! Was super into this record when it first came out, great modern pick.

Finally listened! Really good. Really struggled between and four tho because it didn't blow me away. I have been rounding down lately so I'll round up this time!

What a cool sounding album. Out of my usual tastes for music but found this very enjoyable.

On second listen I liked it more. It's good. MAybe a high 3 low 4.

Crazy good vibes on this one. Really enjoyed how smooth and fresh everything sounds.

First really contemporary album (like within the last 20 years) I've gotten so far and I'm thankful for it, I get the feeling I'm gonna like it quite a bit. Update after listening: I was right modern classics never fail me, I've Been Dazed is a fantastic song

I really love this. I would have rated it a 5 star if not for the kinda karaoke that you can sometimes detect a sort of in between Ben E. King and a post religion Al Green. Still a really great album and probably aside from Portishead the only time I have ever liked hearing the 4 bar "Trip-Hop" drum loop.

wasnt bad. i feel like the list gives us some stuff that sound similar. this one, being of them.

I know why this was on the list, and I'm sure there are LOTS of people that like this stuff, but it's not for me. I don't love when electronic music is the main driver. It makes me forget to pay attention to the vocals, songwriting, lyrics, or any real instruments, because I am so focused on the annoyance and distraction of the electronic music. Because it just automatically makes me feel like they are covering up a lack of talent and instantly becomes boring.

Not something I would normally listen to. Someone i never heard of. Something I enjoyed. Something I was glad I was exposed to. The reason I try to listen everyday weather i know the artist alblum or not.

I was pleasantly surprised. I was prepared to think the worse, but it wasn’t.

Only listened to half. And half of that was fire. The other half way alright too.

What’s this? Recent music that doesn’t suck?? Give me KIWANUKA, I like this.

Wow! So interesting and such a good vibe. Definitely one of my favorite albums this list has introduced me to (nothing beats I am a bird now but this album is almost close). Easy 5/5

Goddamn, I had exactly zero expectations or thoughts going into this but damn if this ain't peak grooviness

Left an impression on me for sure. An immense amount of artistic depth, that will probably take multiple listens to unpack. Really liked, and will definitely be spinning again.