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Album Review: The Juice Vol. 1
New heights are reached for conversational R&B
The Juice Vol. 1 by Emotional Oranges
Emotional Oranges is an elusive R&B duo from Los Angeles. Their forward-thinking brand of R&B has generated praise from Michelle Obama and Kanye West. Juice is the first of a pair of albums that came out in 2019. If R&B is dying, as some artists suggest, then groups like Emotional Oranges are their lifeline.
Juice is packed with crisp production and spectacular versatility. Emo and V conversationally sing across disco, house, and boom bat beats. On ‘Someone Else’ they chop up a soul sample to start off the track and album opener “Motion channels” signals late 90’s dance pop. Emo and V sing back and forth in convincing and dynamic R&B songs. On tracks like “Hold You Back” and “Someone Else” their heart break is ridiculously palpable.
In about 25 minutes Emotional Oranges reimagined the parameters of modern R&B. It was a surprisingly dense sonic adventure. V gave emotionally charged vocals on the chorus of “Built That…
