“Stone Foundation are a group of seven like minded individuals that team together to make an exciting blend of Soul and Jazz influenced music” reads an excerpt from a couple of paragraphs into the about section on their busy Facebook page.
The group appear to have been very active for a number of years gigging and recording, with their previous album ‘To Find The Spirit’ charting in the UK top 40. Working from their own rural midlands based studio the group craft a soulful and dynamic sound laced with feelings of warmth and nostalgia and this approach certainly appears to be moving them in the right direction, with 2015 looking to be Stone Foundation’s biggest and most important year to date. The 7th August sees the release of their album ‘A Life Unlimited’ (released June 2015 in Japan through P-Vine Records) which, if the quality of the first single release ‘Beverley’ is anything to go by, promises to be a great soulful, summertime listen.
‘Beverley’ definitely harbours that blend of Soul and Jazz with plenty more thrown in for good measure. The musicianship is top notch and the recording quality is excellent which gives it a modern but slightly vintage feel. The highlights of the track for me are the smooth horn section and also the exceptional voice of Neil Jones who sounds strong yet effortless on this track. I generally dislike making too many comparisons when writing about music but it does bring to mind the feel of The Monophonics or even Smoove and Turrell, albeit without the raw feel and edginess.
The release of this album will be supported by an extensive touring schedule both here and abroad with some interesting dates and venues to watch out for such as Fuji Rock in Tokyo on the 24th of July and the Jazz Cafe in London on the 17th of October.
I for one will be excited to hear ‘A Life Unlimited’ upon it’s release on August 9th and will definitely be keeping my eyes peeled for any tour dates that happen to appear nearby.
For more info on ‘Stone Foundation’ and their upcoming album release and tour schedule head over to their website.
