Cool Million - Stronger (2019)
Cool Million - Stronger (2019)
EAC Rip | FLAC (Tracks) +CUE, LOG | 426 MB | Scans
Genre: Funk / Soul | Label: Sedsoul Records | Catalog Number: CMR001
EAC Rip | FLAC (Tracks) +CUE, LOG | 426 MB | Scans
Genre: Funk / Soul | Label: Sedsoul Records | Catalog Number: CMR001
On their fifth full-length album, Stronger, Cool Million continue to deliver classic-sounding grooves fronted by strong vocalists with warm melodies and enticing lyrics. Some selections stick to the template of at once retro and modern polished soul arrangements underscored with R&B- and disco-fueled tracks—which they’ve been noted for since 2008. The production duo, however, also delves into the electro-funk realm on several cuts, while exploring the slow-jam quotient more widely than on previous efforts. Furthermore, unlike most of the preceding sets, the focus here shifts from longstanding vocalists to up-and-coming artists.
Stronger opens with the bubbling title track, penned by frontmen Rob Hardt and Frank Ryle with backing singer David Tobin and featuring the lead vocal prowess of James “D-Train” Williams. The motivational lyrics are a bit on the clichéd side, but D-Train instills them with an unmistakable grit that drives the uptempo arrangement to a most satisfying musical destination. “Stronger” is followed by the edgier “I Love the Way You Fly,” spotlighting singer-songwriter Claus Seest, who debuted several years ago on Ryle’s eponomous side project. He glides with assured smoothness and engaging enthusiasm over the funky rhythm arrangement. Subsequently, newcomer Jasmine Franklin makes a solid impression with the jazzy and sassy “Queen Sugar.” “Clap your hands, go on and stamp your feet/Shake your hips in a size 32, 6 D’s,” she beckons, then proclaiming, “Universe responds to her energy…sage bundles, eternal light, daily remedy.” Go ahead!
Rachel Matthews heads up perhaps the sultriest moment on Stronger: the alluring “Skintight.” With a soft and sexy style that fits like a glove over the sleek melody, she embodies the essence of an unassuming, natural chanteuse who can seduce merely with the right mix of phrasing and tone. Kevin East then serves up a fitting male counterpart on the go-go-groovin’ “Sexability.”
The second half of Strongeris primarily comprised of slow-jams and midtempo numbers. While these benefit from the addition of live instrumentation and romantic vocal vibes, the arrangements aren’t overall as cohesive as those of the uptempo tracks. Still, the lead performers largely make up for any musical shortcomings. Yolonda Lavender offers a lovely conveyance of hope and peace on “No Matter What,” a gently grooving gem hampered only slightly by a quasi-horn section. While David Tobin’s Teddy Pendergrass-inspired turn on “Come Back Home” is plausible, it’s not quite enough to overcome the menadering melodies and somewhat barren production. Janus Soiland fares better on the airy “Share the Light,” boosted by a hip-hop-etched rhythm pattern and tight bass and guitar work by Ernie McKone and Maic Burkhardt, respectively.
Stronger is a well-conceived next chapter in the Cool Million story. While several recent contemporaries honing in on the classic R&B boogie sound prevalent during the 1980s have since come and gone, Hardt and Ryle have continued to remain relevant with a tried and true approach. Expanding their sound hasn’t come without a few bumps in the road; but all in all, they’ve done a fine job here of remaining faithful to their core musical mission while keeping things fresh.
Exact Audio Copy V1.5 from 20. February 2020
EAC extraction logfile from 11. March 2020, 23:29
Cool Million / Stronger
Used drive : GENERIC CDRCB05 Adapter: 1 ID: 0
Read mode : Secure
Utilize accurate stream : Yes
Defeat audio cache : No
Make use of C2 pointers : No
Read offset correction : 102
Overread into Lead-In and Lead-Out : No
Fill up missing offset samples with silence : Yes
Delete leading and trailing silent blocks : No
Null samples used in CRC calculations : Yes
Used interface : Native Win32 interface for Win NT & 2000
Gap handling : Appended to previous track
Used output format : User Defined Encoder
Selected bitrate : 1024 kBit/s
Quality : High
Add ID3 tag : No
Command line compressor : C:\Program Files (x86)\Exact Audio Copy\FLAC\FLAC.EXE
Additional command line options : -8 -V -T "ARTIST=%artist%" -T "TITLE=%title%" -T "ALBUM=%albumtitle%" -T "DATE=%year%" -T "TRACKNUMBER=%tracknr%" -T "GENRE=%genre%" -T "PERFORMER=%albuminterpret%" -T "COMPOSER=%composer%"%haslyrics%–tag-from-file=LYRICS="%lyricsfile%"%haslyrics% -T "ALBUMARTIST=%albumartist%" -T "DISCNUMBER=%cdnumber%" -T "TOTALDISCS=%totalcds%" -T "TOTALTRACKS=%numtracks%" -T "COMMENT=%comment%" %source% -o %dest%
TOC of the extracted CD
Track | Start | Length | Start sector | End sector
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––-
1 | 0:00.00 | 4:21.49 | 0 | 19623
2 | 4:21.49 | 5:15.35 | 19624 | 43283
3 | 9:37.09 | 5:07.30 | 43284 | 66338
4 | 14:44.39 | 4:51.18 | 66339 | 88181
5 | 19:35.57 | 5:20.47 | 88182 | 112228
6 | 24:56.29 | 5:04.01 | 112229 | 135029
7 | 30:00.30 | 3:57.22 | 135030 | 152826
8 | 33:57.52 | 5:28.54 | 152827 | 177480
9 | 39:26.31 | 4:51.30 | 177481 | 199335
10 | 44:17.61 | 5:05.11 | 199336 | 222221
11 | 49:22.72 | 5:07.56 | 222222 | 245302
12 | 54:30.53 | 4:52.56 | 245303 | 267258
13 | 59:23.34 | 4:35.27 | 267259 | 287910
Track 1
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\01 - Stronger (12-Inch-Mix).wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:02.00
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 4.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC C81A13C2
Copy CRC C81A13C2
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [15B67F8A] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 2
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\02 - I Love The Way You Fly.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 4.5 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC D986B893
Copy CRC D986B893
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [9E7BEA2B] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 3
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\03 - Queen Sugar.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 4.9 X
Track quality 99.9 %
Test CRC 521AA81E
Copy CRC 521AA81E
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [01856048] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 4
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\04 - Skintight.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 5.4 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 87BFECA4
Copy CRC 87BFECA4
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [7138F89E] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 5
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\05 - Save Your Love.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 5.7 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC AE5C1A12
Copy CRC AE5C1A12
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [E169CD0F] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 6
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\06 - Sexability.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 6.1 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 62C62DDF
Copy CRC 62C62DDF
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [EE0042F9] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 7
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\07 - Slow Burn Love.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 6.3 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 8819AD82
Copy CRC 8819AD82
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [AB9F1591] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 8
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\08 - No Matter What.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 6.7 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC D11C7BF8
Copy CRC D11C7BF8
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [CB83B348] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 9
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\09 - Keep On.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 7.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 71618613
Copy CRC 71618613
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [D616E905] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 10
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\10 - Come Back Home.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 7.3 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 7854F223
Copy CRC 7854F223
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [F957A53B] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 11
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\11 - Share The Light.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 7.4 X
Track quality 99.9 %
Test CRC 6C0BE4AD
Copy CRC 6C0BE4AD
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [C2C94296] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 12
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\12 - Your Move.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 7.8 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 444F11E7
Copy CRC 444F11E7
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [D2C7B680] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 13
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\13 - Summer Rain.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 8.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 8BBA5977
Copy CRC 8BBA5977
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [B54C25D0] (AR v2)
Copy OK
All tracks accurately ripped
No errors occurred
End of status report
–– CUETools DB Plugin V2.1.6
[CTDB TOCID: ty65SMhVUOJZ.jgY5moDupqR_Lw-] found
Submit result: ty65SMhVUOJZ.jgY5moDupqR_Lw- has been confirmed
Track | CTDB Status
1 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
2 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
3 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
4 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
5 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
6 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
7 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
8 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
9 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
10 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
11 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
12 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
13 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
==== Log checksum 4FEDADC5157BDD24C53C8603675BBA8417BF1D8E1AE00BE1BB5E466E5D984727 ====
EAC extraction logfile from 11. March 2020, 23:29
Cool Million / Stronger
Used drive : GENERIC CDRCB05 Adapter: 1 ID: 0
Read mode : Secure
Utilize accurate stream : Yes
Defeat audio cache : No
Make use of C2 pointers : No
Read offset correction : 102
Overread into Lead-In and Lead-Out : No
Fill up missing offset samples with silence : Yes
Delete leading and trailing silent blocks : No
Null samples used in CRC calculations : Yes
Used interface : Native Win32 interface for Win NT & 2000
Gap handling : Appended to previous track
Used output format : User Defined Encoder
Selected bitrate : 1024 kBit/s
Quality : High
Add ID3 tag : No
Command line compressor : C:\Program Files (x86)\Exact Audio Copy\FLAC\FLAC.EXE
Additional command line options : -8 -V -T "ARTIST=%artist%" -T "TITLE=%title%" -T "ALBUM=%albumtitle%" -T "DATE=%year%" -T "TRACKNUMBER=%tracknr%" -T "GENRE=%genre%" -T "PERFORMER=%albuminterpret%" -T "COMPOSER=%composer%"%haslyrics%–tag-from-file=LYRICS="%lyricsfile%"%haslyrics% -T "ALBUMARTIST=%albumartist%" -T "DISCNUMBER=%cdnumber%" -T "TOTALDISCS=%totalcds%" -T "TOTALTRACKS=%numtracks%" -T "COMMENT=%comment%" %source% -o %dest%
TOC of the extracted CD
Track | Start | Length | Start sector | End sector
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––-
1 | 0:00.00 | 4:21.49 | 0 | 19623
2 | 4:21.49 | 5:15.35 | 19624 | 43283
3 | 9:37.09 | 5:07.30 | 43284 | 66338
4 | 14:44.39 | 4:51.18 | 66339 | 88181
5 | 19:35.57 | 5:20.47 | 88182 | 112228
6 | 24:56.29 | 5:04.01 | 112229 | 135029
7 | 30:00.30 | 3:57.22 | 135030 | 152826
8 | 33:57.52 | 5:28.54 | 152827 | 177480
9 | 39:26.31 | 4:51.30 | 177481 | 199335
10 | 44:17.61 | 5:05.11 | 199336 | 222221
11 | 49:22.72 | 5:07.56 | 222222 | 245302
12 | 54:30.53 | 4:52.56 | 245303 | 267258
13 | 59:23.34 | 4:35.27 | 267259 | 287910
Track 1
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\01 - Stronger (12-Inch-Mix).wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:02.00
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 4.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC C81A13C2
Copy CRC C81A13C2
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [15B67F8A] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 2
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\02 - I Love The Way You Fly.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 4.5 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC D986B893
Copy CRC D986B893
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [9E7BEA2B] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 3
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\03 - Queen Sugar.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 4.9 X
Track quality 99.9 %
Test CRC 521AA81E
Copy CRC 521AA81E
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [01856048] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 4
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\04 - Skintight.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 5.4 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 87BFECA4
Copy CRC 87BFECA4
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [7138F89E] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 5
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\05 - Save Your Love.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 5.7 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC AE5C1A12
Copy CRC AE5C1A12
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [E169CD0F] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 6
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\06 - Sexability.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 6.1 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 62C62DDF
Copy CRC 62C62DDF
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [EE0042F9] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 7
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\07 - Slow Burn Love.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 6.3 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 8819AD82
Copy CRC 8819AD82
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [AB9F1591] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 8
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\08 - No Matter What.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 6.7 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC D11C7BF8
Copy CRC D11C7BF8
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [CB83B348] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 9
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\09 - Keep On.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 7.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 71618613
Copy CRC 71618613
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [D616E905] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 10
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\10 - Come Back Home.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 7.3 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 7854F223
Copy CRC 7854F223
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [F957A53B] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 11
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\11 - Share The Light.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 7.4 X
Track quality 99.9 %
Test CRC 6C0BE4AD
Copy CRC 6C0BE4AD
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [C2C94296] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 12
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\12 - Your Move.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 7.8 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 444F11E7
Copy CRC 444F11E7
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [D2C7B680] (AR v2)
Copy OK
Track 13
Filename C:\Users\ivort\Desktop\RIPS\Cool Million - Stronger (2019)\13 - Summer Rain.wav
Pre-gap length 0:00:03.76
Peak level 97.7 %
Extraction speed 8.0 X
Track quality 100.0 %
Test CRC 8BBA5977
Copy CRC 8BBA5977
Accurately ripped (confidence 1) [B54C25D0] (AR v2)
Copy OK
All tracks accurately ripped
No errors occurred
End of status report
–– CUETools DB Plugin V2.1.6
[CTDB TOCID: ty65SMhVUOJZ.jgY5moDupqR_Lw-] found
Submit result: ty65SMhVUOJZ.jgY5moDupqR_Lw- has been confirmed
Track | CTDB Status
1 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
2 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
3 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
4 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
5 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
6 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
7 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
8 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
9 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
10 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
11 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
12 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
13 | (5/5) Accurately ripped
==== Log checksum 4FEDADC5157BDD24C53C8603675BBA8417BF1D8E1AE00BE1BB5E466E5D984727 ====
Tracklist ::
01. Stronger (12-Inch-Mix)
02. I Love The Way You Fly
03. Queen Sugar
04. Skintight
05. Save Your Love
06. Sexability
07. Slow Burn Love
08. No Matter What
09. Keep On
10. Come Back Home
11. Share The Light
12. Your Move
13. Summer Rain