I’ve only discovered Will Holland and his Quantic Soul Orchestra thanks to the Alice Russell album Under The Munka Moon, which features some of the songs Will has recorded with Alice either under his Quantic Soul Orchestra or his Quantic moniker.
What separates the Quantic Soul Orchestra (QSC) from Quantic is that the QSC is about live music without the use of samples and studio wizardry.
Sure there’s Alice Russell on five tracks adding lots of soul but the overall feeling of the QSC is more funk than soul. Think of James Brown, Maceo Parker or Bobby Byrd grooves transformed into the 21st century and you get the idea of the sound present on this album.
The first song Introducing…The Quantic Soul Orchestra sets the pace with its raw and funky vibe. Songs like West Pier Getdown, That Goose On My Grave or the great Get A Move On (with flute and organ) beam you right into the musical score of blaxploitation movies.
Alice Russell adds further power to the songs. Pushin’ On or End Of The Road evokes memories of vintage uptempo soul and funk songs by Aretha Franklin or Vicki Anderson. Alice even delivers a very fine update of Nina Simone’s Feeling Good that adds something new to this song with flugelhorn and strings.
And there’s another song I like to pick for its cutting edge. Paintings And Journeys is a tapestry of music tied with guitar, strings, tambourine, drums, saxophone and percussion to create a beautiful piece of music that defies musical borders.
It’s great to see that funk music isn’t dead or just the type of music some veterans are still playing but alive and kicking and re-interpreted, renewed and recreated by young musicians. Altogether highly recommendable.

Tracklisting of Pushin’ On: 1. Introducing…The Quantic Soul Orchestra/ 2. West Pier Getdown/ 3. Pushin’ On Feat. Alice Russell/ 4. That Goose on My Grave/ 5. Feeling Good Feat. Alice Russell/ 6. The Conspirator (Main Theme)/ 7. Hands of My Love Feat. Alice Russell/ 8. Hold On Tight Feat. Alice Russell/ 9. Get A Move On/ 10. Paintings and Journeys/ 11. End Of The Road Feat. Alice Russell | released 2005 by Tru Thoughts

For more infos visit tru-thoughts.co.uk, quantic.org and grooveattack.com.

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