Music Review // Martin Luther McCoy "Welcome Back Love"

Martin Luither McCoy has not only such a special sound on "Welcome Back Love", but he has such a special message to go along with it.   From the start of this album it feels like I'm taken back to a time when movies were starring Kid N Play.   It's just that 1990's R&B vibe with some funky soul thrown in to make this also feel like gospel.  But the way that it feels like gospel is partly because of the preaching, such as on the first song which is called "Reimagine The World".  I do feel, right now, like reimagining the world would be a good way of sort hitting a hard reset button, which is what is needed for a better world.

With a nice bass line, horns come through as well and even the saxophone doesn't feel like it's just there to contribute little notes but rather to be front and center.  The second song, "It's Going Down Tonight", has more of these synth pops which can make this feel more like a party number.  Everyone knows Montell Jordan for that one song, but they don't always want to go back and fully realize the impact music of that style had at that time.  This is that type of sound we heard from artists such as Jodeci and Shai, but we don't hear as much in 2026.  Even the titular song has that same vibe as when MC Hammer was singing about The Addams Family.

During this album, you will reach a point where a song comes on and you might not immediately recognize it, but when you hear the chorus you should.   Elton John's "I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues" comes out with these big, supersonic synths that makes me feel like we're in some film like "Logan's Run" but yet the guitar is also so spot on.  It's just this chill and dreamy cover of a classic that should be one of your first signs of how hard this album will hit you, and how often you should come back to it after hearing it for the first time.

As someone who grew up with the hip-hop and R&B featured selections from Columbia House, I have cassettes that are soundtracks to films people likely don't even remember existed.  But to hear something that reminds me of that time, in modern times, and also with that modern touch just makes me feel like that style of music is not lost.  From the titular track having a great feature from Stic of Dead Prez, to the lyrics such as: "When man is replaced by computers / Fearing the truth you refuse to learn" which could become a hot topic these days, Martin Luther McCoy has found a way to bring the past up to the present to preserve the future.