Deluxe reissue of Gizelle Smith & The Mighty Mocambos’ debut album
15 years onwards from the original release in October 2009, This Is … , the debut album by Gizelle Smith & The Mighty Mocambos, remains a classic in its genre. Upfront, raw and melodic, this super sister funk album has not aged at all. Now, in 2024, it is time for a proper re-release with unreleased bonus tracks, rare remixes and a limited edition double vinyl album. Welcome to the deluxe version of This Is … by Gizelle Smith & The Mighty Mocambos.
Ever since their first collaboration on the Mocambo Funk Forty Fives compilation, things started gaining momentum for Gizelle Smith, the “Golden Girl of Funk”, and the much respected Hamburg-based label and live band The Mighty Mocambos. Their first single “Working Woman” became an overnight smash and a prime-time club favourite of funk & soul DJs from all over the world. Initially released on the Finnish private press label Old Capital, producer legend and Grammy nominee Kenny Dope (Masters at Work / Bucketheads) picked up the song and remixed it for his own label Kay Dee Records.
Gizelle Smith & Mocambos now step up with a full-length album of bonafide sister funk. In the days of digital recording and Pro Tools editing, they show true exception to modern techniques and create their highly regarded, unique and raw soul sound, by making use of simple dynamic microphones and reel-to-reel tape machines. In a genre which is often littered with overused clichés of the past, the charismatic Gizelle Smith adds a lot of her own flavour rather than slavishly copying icons of bygone decades. The result is a refreshing alternative to post-millenium plastic pop without being a mere retro rip-off.
From the heavy and determined “Gonna Get You” to vulnerable, gospel-tinged laments such as “Coffee High”, this album is just as deeply rooted in the music from the golden era of soul as it is a modern masterpiece in its own right. Blazing horns, soulful guitars, driving drums and basslines combined with Gizelle’s gripping and powerful voice all weave together to create a long player that is varied and coherent at the same time. This Is… the sound of Gizelle Smith & The Mighty Mocambos!
‘This Is…’ out on 2LP / Digitally on Oct. 11th 2024 via Légère Recordings
