On “I Come Alive (Rimshots and Basses),” a track off Incognito’s latest CD, Tales from the Beach, lead singer Joy Rose sings, “I come alive, when the backbeat starts to hit me / Takes me home and feeds my soul.” These lyrics not only define music as inspiration, but also summarize the Incognito sound.
Listening to their albums is like comfort food, an experience that relaxes you through its consistency and gentle grooves. Longtime fans know exactly what to expect when picking up a new Incognito album, and that’s not a bad thing; the band excels at its particular sound, a unique fusion of funk and jazz. Although Tales from the Beach marks their debut on new label Heads Up, longtime fans can be reassured the move has not altered their musical style.
Incognito’s particular style, however, is difficult to classify. Jean-Paul “Bluey” Maunick (along with co-founding member Paul “Tubbs” Williams) formed the band in the early 70s, eventually releasing their landmark work, Jazz Funk, in 1981. Melding world music with funky bass patterns and complicated chord changes, this work foreshadowed the U.K.’s burgeoning “acid jazz” movement, which reached its peak in the 90s (its best-known practitioners in the U.S. being Jamiroquai and the Brand New Heavies).
Williams subsequently left the group, so Incognito transformed into a music project helmed by Maunick and featured a rotating group of musicians and vocalists. Retuning after a ten-year absence with 1991’s Inside Life, Incognito released a steady stream of albums in the 90s and the early 00s. After scoring a minor hit on U.S. contemporary R&B radio with “Deep Waters” in 1994, the group gained a devoted following in America as well as throughout the world, continuing to perfect their version of acid jazz.
Incognito’s lyrics typically describe both heartache and optimism, and their latest album has both types in abundance. “I Remember a Time” laments a past romance, while “N.O.T.” chronicles the end of a relationship.
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