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The Vintage Vibes and Neo Song Style of Nhojj's SOUL COMFORT

Author-Poet Aberjhani | Georgia, United States | 10/20/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The music on Nhojj's vintage-styled Soul Comfort provided great company for my own soul throughout the summer of 2008 and I'm looking forward to pumping up the volume on this superb CD as we celebrate our way toward 2009. Just as the title implies, Soul Comfort is both Nhojj's tribute to the classic vibes of classic soul music, and, his own exquisitely original contribution to the genre's neo-branded catalog.



In an era dominated by war, cut-throat politics, and economic vulnerability, it's easy to forget the power and joy one can claim with a simple shift in focus. The opening track on Soul Comfort, "Doing m' Thing," is a perfect reminder of that joy and power as it grooves along with the easy grace of smooth jazz made even more so by subtly restrained yet amazingly pronounced vocals. Experiencing the singer's private dance with serenity, it becomes easy to imagine a silver flute articulating the lyrics: "Listening to the song on the breeze...Love is the thought...Peace in my heart...I know why...Cause I'm Doing m' Thing..."



Someday Peace Love & Freedom



One of the profound pleasures of enjoying music by Nhojj is that of sharing in the blissful rapture that so obviously absorbs him when doing his thing. So it is with "Music," the second track. As we listen to it, we have no trouble believing when he soars through these lines: "Music is the space I pray in... Music is God blessing me... Music is the place I go to... When the world is stressing me..." That gentle confession is backed up in a mighty way by the eleven songs that follow.





Take for example the harmony-layered bliss of "I Like That." Instead of an extended body of lyrics relaying a story or personal statement of any kind, the song rolls along on waves of overlapping choral harmonies punctuated with soft laughter and the single phrase: "I Like That." In other words, the music itself is the message as we witness an artist in fields of creativity heaven, at play with his muse, and clearly enjoying the thrill.





This homage to music itself goes even further (though somewhat paradoxically so) with the title cut. Framed by Stephan Michael Sechi's sensitive keyboard, "Soul Comfort" is an ultra-minimalist sigh of a composition. It nevertheless manages to express simultaneously a yearning for and an affirmation of the intoxicating essence of music born of a truly cosmically-inspired soul. "The Light" rocks like turbo-powered disco funk while "Peace and Blessings" offers inspirational jazz at its best (so naturally it's been playing forever on my MySpace profile). Yet both songs accommodate the same irresistible mode of metaphysically-charged musical vision.





An Intimate Evening with Nhojj



As agreeably elevated as Nhojj's mystical beats can get, the singer can also deliver in a key as down-to-earth and humanly intimate as an overcrowded subway train. His skill at dissecting the ups and downs of relationships was made beautifully apparent on previous releases and serves him well on the hauntingly emotional ballad, "Please Come Back," as well as the starkly sensuous "Love." Moreover (without meaning at all to sound satirical) one can hardly get more down to earth than the "grave" alluded to in "James Donovan," a mournful elegy that pays fitting tribute to "all those we've lost to AIDS."



"Dream," track number seven, could be exactly what the title describes or it could function as a metaphor that fuses the erotic with the divine. It's probably best in this case to drop attempts at interpretation and simply accept the song's invitation to "...Soar...And realize...You'll be alright...."





I've Been Waiting for You



One thing that those who have followed Nhojj's career for a while will notice immediately about Soul Comfort is that the individual sometimes described as a "one-man orchestra" is not flying solo on this set. Surrounded by a number of gifted peers, including co-producer Jon Evans, the brilliant results are satisfyingly evident throughout. But even within this set filled with small bright masterpieces, the duet with Mike Ibrahim on "Spring Rain" stands out as something special: "...In the forest inside of me... I've already gone too far... But the sky sends its Light for me... To clear my eyes... In a Spring Rain..." It seems almost sometimes as if two duets intertwine within "Spring Rain." One is the simpatico between Nhojj's and Ibrahim's musical sensibilities. The other is that between Ibrahim and the strings of his guitar.



The same camaraderie that lends grace and power to "Spring Rain" works a similar magic on "My Brother." Guest artists "baron," ButtaFlySoul, Dwaine Bramwell, Jesse O., Sam Martinborough, and seân effectively add additional vocals and spoken word to this rare and moving salute to friendship.



The final unlisted bonus track number thirteen is a welcomed surprise: first because it's unexpected, and second because it comes charging through the speakers like an invigorating psychedelic funk rush. Therefore Soul Comfort begins with a meditative whisper in the form of "Doing m' Thing" and ends with a big rocking bang. Maybe that's Nhojj's way of letting us know he's just getting started good, and that as stuffed with musical amazement as Soul Comfort is, there's a lot more where it all came from.



Let's hope so.





by Author-Poet Aberjhani

author of ELEMENTAL, the Power of Illuminated Love

and The American Poet Who Went Home Again

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