The newest kid on the blue-eyed soul block hails from that Welsh village with the long, long name…. (Llanfairpwll etc, etc); his name is easier to handle – NATE WILLIAMS. We first heard of NATE via his work with the Bassment Project but for the last seven months he’s been working on his own solo project – a 13 cut, modern soul set called ‘Got To Let Go’.
Nate’s press people tell us that our young man has for ever been in thrall to a certain Stevie Wonder and listening to his album that’s patently obvious… though you’ll also hear traces of others who’ve been equally taken by Mr Wonder – think Robin Thicke, Brian McKnight, Babyface – even little old Michael Jackson and the UK’s own Jay Kay.
The instrumentation is chiefly electronic but Nate’s soulful vocals make up for some of the sterility of the backing tracks. ‘Wait, You Did’ is a particularly pleasing track – a sweet ballad that recalls the best of Babyface (a hint of the Whispers about this one too). ‘Miss You’ is another great ballad –stark and dramatic with a sweet, soulful vocal. ‘Seven Years’ is another good tune. It’s not the Impressions’ song but it has the same catchy attraction – a lovely, lazy, jazzy modern soul roller, this one. ‘D.T.M.B.’ –with input from a lady called Vula – is another insistent foot tapper and reminds me a lot of the stuff Cool Million work on.
Nate’s looking for label support for the album at the moment – but diligent internet searching will, I’m sure, allow you to learn a little more about Mr Williams and his intriguing album, ‘Got To Let Go’.
