Brittany Howard groooves on What Now, a wavy neo-soul collage written in bright letters cut from magazines. Coming off an indefinite hiatus in 2018 with the rock band Alabama Shakes, Howard moved into her solo arc with Jaime, a blaringly tender, yet stripped down, record exploring precisely where soul music diverges from being a label or tag to whole expressions of emotion. What Now returns to that same crossroads but trades the time faded aesthetic of its former for loudened production and soul-tinged everything.
Done up in the shimmering livery of early 70s psychedelic soul bands like Sly and the Family Stone and Love, What Now holds onto this dream-paced funkiness to embrace a wider world of influences. Every genre fanning outward is seasoned soulfully and delightfully balanced by Howard’s musical ear; dance sounds jazzy and jazz sounds dancey in a pop bespeckled world.
As with other soul-centric artists like the late Charles Bradley, Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, Lady Wray and Durand Jones, fashions nowadays will nostalgically pay homage to the rhythms and styles of golden age soul. What Now bends towards the same purities but enjoys breaks in the sun and eccentricities that form an indie love triangle with soul searches and the 2010s CD section at Barnes and Nobles.
gone gazing 