Light In The Attic Records immediately follows up its deluxe reissues of the first two Betty Davis classics with Keep Reachin’ Up, a passionate but suave mod soul collaboration from the lovely and talented Nicole Willis and celebrated Finland funk collective the Soul Investigators. In the cold far North dance underground, they have created a uniquely hot record of romantic grooves!

The Brooklyn-born Willis has worked with both Curtis Mayfield and the Brand New Heavies and done crucial work for Mo’ Wax, while the Finnish-bred Soul Investigators have crafted two previous full-lengths. Fans of Amy Winehouse and Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings will find much to love on Keep Reachin’ Up.

Adored by the UK’s Northern Soul DJs and fans, international momentum for the full-length has been primed by a BBC Top Ten Track of the Year list for “If This Ain’t Love” and world famous DJ Gilles Peterson making opening track “Feeling Free” the 2006 Worldwide Winner Song of the Year. MOJO and Record Collector gave the Finnish edition four stars and Dusty Groove called it an “instant classic.”

It doesn’t bother Willis if some people consider it retro, though. “Certainly the music was a project of love but retro isn’t a swear word so it could be considered that as well,” Willis says. “However, I believe that we do a certain genre of music and that we are continuing in a tradition.”

The Soul Investigators includes producer Jukka Sarapää on drums, Didier “Baby Spector” Selin on tambourine, guitar & bass, Pete Toikkanen on guitar & bass, Antti Määtänen on organ & piano, and Sami Kantelinen on bass, among other musicians. The recording also includes contributions from renowned composer and Matador Records-alum Jimi Tenor(flute, tenor sax, horn & string arrangements), and string arrangements from Pekka Kuusisto.

After playing with members of the Brand New Heavies and Curtis Mayfield, Willis moved back to the United States and worked with the band that would become Dee-Lite. “We had a similar perspective with our music,” she says. “I was the original third member in that band. The Mo Wax release was the first for us and the label while I sang lead vocal in the group Repercussions. It seems as always with universal consciousness that people are reaching back into their history and picking out timely genres and musical movements.”

Keep Reachin’ Up has conquered Europe with its great tracks like “Downtown” and “Feeling Free,” and the album is an essential part of any collection of contemporary urban music. A new soul classic making its North American debut.