★★★★ Divas of Soul arrives at the Fringe with a strong pedigree. Last year, this young band earned four‑star reviews for Divas of Jazz, praised for “mesmerising vocals” and a late‑night atmosphere that clearly resonated with audiences. Their new show is more ambitious: a journey through six decades of soul, tracing the genre’s evolution through its greatest voices — Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, Roberta Flack, Randy Crawford, Stevie Wonder, Amy Winehouse, Olivia Dean and more.
From the first groove, Theatre 1 fills with warm, confident musicianship. The band are tight, stylish, and clearly in love with this music. Pianist Angus Alphonse and drummer Vic Palmer lock into rhythms with ease, while Joey Read’s bass gives the set its pocket and pulse. They’re a well‑matched ensemble, and when they settle into a rhythm, the room lifts.
A real strength of the show lies in its storytelling. Vocalist Hannah Hay guides the audience through the history of soul — its origins, its cultural weight, the artists who shaped it — and these spoken passages are engaging and well delivered. The show promises that each song arrives with the story behind it, and that intention comes through clearly. Her enthusiasm for the genre is unmistakable, and the educational thread gives the evening a welcome sense of shape and purpose.
Vocally, the performance sits in a different space. Hay’s jazz‑trained voice, the same one that earned praise last year, leans toward a cleaner, more polished tone rather than the raw, gritty texture soul typically demands. When covering Amy Winehouse and other artists she cites as inspirations, the hallmarks of soul — note bending, micro‑tonal shifts, that lived‑in rasp — don’t fully appear. Her voice is pleasant and capable, but stylistically it doesn’t always land where the material needs it to.
This creates a slight mismatch: the band deliver authentic soul grooves, while the vocals steer toward a more polished, event‑band sound. It doesn’t make the performance bad — far from it — but it does mean the show feels more like a lively, well‑played late‑night Fringe wind‑down than a fully realised soul tribute.
Still, there is plenty to enjoy: excellent musicians, a singer who genuinely loves the genre, and a thoughtful narrative thread that enriches the experience. The ambition behind Divas of Soul is clear, and with deeper stylistic commitment on the vocal side, it could evolve into something far more powerful.
Reviewd by Jacqueline Sharp
