In 1989 Virgin Records, arguably the biggest label in the UK at the time, released Soul II Soul’s seminal album Club Classics Vol.1. The record’s fusion of piano riffs, drum machine-driven beats and smooth, soulful vocals, alongside its commercial and critical success, marked a pivotal moment in the history of UK soul music, helping popularise a sound and sub-genre more commonly referred to these days as street soul.
Though street soul is generally associated with cities like London and Manchester, mainstream successes like Soul II Soul and Loose Ends helped the sub-genre permeate well beyond the borders of UK underground music. “You can hear the impact of it in a fair bit of music that was recorded down here in [New Zealand in] the late ‘80s and ‘90s.” music journalist and DJ Martyn Pepperell tells Low End Theorists.
Similar to recent reissue labels, curators and DJs like Ruf Dug, the New Zealander has been doing some street soul digging himself, looking specifically at the sounds coming out of his home country’s back yard during the late ‘80s and ‘90s. Here, the broadcaster chats to us about New Zealand street soul and swingbeat, what got him looking into whether there was a scene and some of the personal favourites he’s been bumping. You can listen to his playlist below.
Moana and the Moahunters
Can you tell us a little about New Zealand Street Soul and Swingbeat?
In the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, a flurry of home studio soul music was released as white label 12”s in the UK. This was music made around the same time that Soul II Soul was redefining the sound of London, and just as breakbeat house, jungle and downbeat was really beginning to explode. While there is debate around whether the music was called Street Soul at the time - in recent years, archivists, DJs and reissue labels have been devoting a bit of effort to retrospectively exploring what was going on. A lot of the music feels like it was written in the shadow of UK Lovers Rock, but with an emphasis on drum machines, synths and soul vocals you can connect with the influence of post-disco, boogie, hip-hop, new jack swing and RnB. Long story short, it sounds great.
Anyway, listening to playlists on Youtube and buying UK Street Soul records got me wondering whether anything similar had happened in New Zealand at the time. The answer to that question is probably somewhere between yes and no. Soul II Soul’s first album had a huge impact on a generation of young New Zealanders - in particular Polynesians - and you can hear the impact of it in a fair bit of music that was recorded down here in the late ‘80s and ‘90s. Some key acts include Houseparty, Fuemana and Sisters Underground. So yeah, when I refer to New Zealand Street Soul, I’m drawing a loose line of connection between here and the UK during the era.
Now, Swingbeat. Swingbeat is another term for the sound we more commonly think of as New Jack Sing. You don’t hear it thrown around that much anymore, but it was a common term in the ‘90s. South Auckland’s Semi MCs, who appear a few times on my playlist, rode the line between Swingbeat and rap with effortless ease.
What got you started on this particular sound?
I’m doubling up a bit here, but, as I mentioned earlier, part of this investigation came as a result of thinking about UK Street Soul. Another factor in the equation was a job I’ve been working on over the last year - script writing on a forthcoming podcast series about the history of hip-hop in Aotearoa New Zealand. And that’s all I’m going to say about that for now.
Sisters Underground
If you had to pick one record from your playlist, which one stands out the most to you and why?
Fuemana, ‘Rocket Love’. The dearly departed Phil Fuemana, who helmed the Fuemana family band, was one of the most important figures in the development of the Urban Pasifika sound in New Zealand during the early 90s. They called him the "the Godfather of South Auckland" and when you look into his remarkable life story, it’s a title that rings true. His sister Christina sings the lead vocal on ‘Rocket Love’ and she delivers it with the sort of effortless cool and poise you’d expect from Sade. All my love to the Fuemana family.
The Fuemana family band
Beyond the playlist, what other projects have you been working on lately?
Traditionally speaking, I usually work as a freelance music journalist, broadcaster and DJ. Obviously though, like most of us, the pandemic has thrown a few spanners in the works this year. So, right now I’m really just happy to have this script writing job to work on. I’ve also been doing some copywriting for a music technology company, recording DJ mixes for a few different platforms, blogging at Test Pressing, and writing the odd freelance piece when I can get the stars to align. Things could be a lot worse, but at the same time, it’s been a pretty challenging year on a number of levels. Hopefully things get better soon.
Tracklist:
Fuemana - ‘Rocket Love’
Teremoana Rapley - ‘Beautiful People’
Sheelahroc - ‘If I Gave U Th' Mic (Phat Beats Down Rhian Sheehan RMX edit)’
Ngaire - ‘When The Feeling Is Gone’
Sisters Underground - ‘In The Neighbourhood’
Sound Foundation - ‘Ram Dancehall’
Unitone HiFi - ‘Sitting By The Phone (feat Teremoana, Bobbylon, Just One)’
Semi MCs - ‘Set Your Body Free’
Straw People - ‘Blue’
Semi MCs - ‘I Don't Need You’
House Party - ‘Dangerous Love’
Semi MCs - ‘Trust Me’
Moana and the Moahunters - ‘A E I O U - Akona Te Reo’
Sisters Underground - ‘Ain't It True’
Gifted and Brown - ‘So Much Soul (Live)’
Anthony loasa - ‘Baby You Know (Pacific Round House Remix)’
Special thanks to Peter McLennan who maintains the excellent Youtube channel many of the songs in this playlist are hosted on. He also runs the very informative Dub Dot Dash blog.