Noah Slee is a fervent reaffirmation of why soul roots itself in soul music. In the same indefinable manner that has writhes neo-soul with experimentation and constant reinvention, the Kiwi-Berliner is an unpredictable force of rhythmic expression, lyrical relatability, and vocal play. His latest is Soulflower – an ode to the one that got away – in a musical form boasting an impression impossible to escape.

 

Soulflower is more of a multi-part composition than it is a work of the neo-soul cloth, yet in that lack for conformity it’s exactly the kind of dynamic auditory mosaic that continues to make neo-soul one of the more inventive and boundary-defying spectrums in all of music. Building on an instrumental base bricked by explosive hand drums, Slee fights his way through a trifecta of differentiated compositional pieces that each contain within their own ranges: soulful verses, an addicting R&B chorus, and hip-hop stanzas exhibiting his poetic penmanship. The outcome is an emotive, vibrant, and daring patchwork refusing to be anything but the modern product of risk-taking and transcendental post-genrification. 

 

As one of the more exciting singles of the Summer, Soulflower and Noah Slee prove that neo-soul is still running 2019’s greater direction with brash individuality and never-ending experimentation.