D’Influence at The Forge (Review)

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Emerging in 1989 as self-described “purveyors of the finest UK street soul”, D’Influence now only perform rare one-off shows. A shame, as, though more active in the production space, with credits for the likes of Shola Ama, Beverley Knight, and Jay Z, the group are as tight, polished, and compelling as they were back in the ’90s when they excited the British club scene. Coronavirus-related illnesses meant that the group had exactly one rehearsal prior to this show at The Forge in Camden, though one could not tell. The only let down in a very strong showing were the backing vocals, rendered inaudible in the sound mix – sadly impacting the intricate syncopations on tracks like “Midnight” and “No Illusions”. But they still cooked up a soulful storm with the deep groove of “Hypnotize”, the breathy rush of “Good 4 We”, and disarmingly sparse ballad “There Can Be”. Lead singer Sarah-Ann Webb is in particularly fine voice – even surpassing the quality of her studio performances – and evoked her idol Chaka Khan with the brassiness on her top notes.

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