On May 3, Sade will release The Ultimate Collection, a 2-CD, 29 track collection of the group’s most iconic songs, including four brand new tracks.

The legendary front-woman of the group has already uploaded three of the four new tracks from the collection, including “I Would Have Never Guessed,” “The Moon And The Sky (Remix feat. Jay-Z)” and my favorite of the bunch “Love Is Found,” which wraps Sade’s signature cooed vocals around sharp piano chords, grinding guitars, orchestral strings, horns and a wicked hip-hop beat. It’s fantastic!

For Muusers who’ve yet to be properly introduced to Sade, this is the truly the best way to begin exploring their discography! Click “Read More…” to see the full tracklisting.

The album is currently available for pre-order at Sade’s official website, which also includes an accompanying DVD. Sade will be touring this summer–check here to see all of the concert dates. (iTunes)
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KATIE WAISSEL.

What? Oh. Just kidding. It’s Matt Cardle.

As I said in my wrap-up of the final performance night, I blame Christina Aguilera for Rebecca Ferguson‘s loss.

I like Matt, but you’d have to be a damn fool to believe he’s going to push more albums than anyone else this season.

For now I shall eagerly await Rebecca’s Natalie Merchant-meets-Sade record full of icy boner jams, and what will surely be an era-defining, swagga-riffic, smash hit debut by the soon-to-be legendary Cher Lloyd.

TEAM CHER 4 EVA.

See you for next year’s flop-fest–the very first US X Factor!

THIS IS IT, as one of the X Factor judges famously sang 17 years ago (oh my God, 17 years?!): The STAR-STUDDED X Factor final show is finally upon us!

And thank God, because I’m totally over it.

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Above is the video for “Babyfather,” the second single off of Sade‘s incredible February release, Soldier of Love.

From the deserts of “Soldier of Love” and into the kitchen, Sade has certainly made quite the about face for her band’s latest video. How gorgeous does she look here? Unbelievable. Lush colors and warm energy follow, resulting in an appropriately sunny video to coincide with the changing season.

This woman makes me believe there is still good in this world.

Click here to read the MuuMuse review of Soldier of Love.

Photo by Sophie Muller.

Okay, Muusers. Who’s looking for a belated Valentine’s Day gift from me to you?

You’ve read the review, now make up your own mind.

MuuMuse is proud to be giving away SIX COPIES of Sade’s new album, Soldier of Love. To enter to win, drop me an e-mail at muumuse@gmail.com with the subject line “SADE” telling me your favorite Sade track.

Six entrants will be selected and notified on February 19 at 12 p.m. EST.

Good luck!

Soldier of Love, Sade‘s first studio album in over ten years, comes sandwiched in between two rather auspiciously timed events: heavy blizzards and Valentine’s Day. What else should be softly playing in the background than the warm, romantic layers of a Sade record?

The musical influences found on this record stretch far across genres and countries–from the aching piano balladry of “Morning Bird,” to the reggae-tinged melodies of “Babyfather” and country twang of “Be That Easy,” to the undefinable surprise in songs like “Bring Me Home,” which waltzes between a modern hip-hop groove, a pensive guitar strum, solemn chants and deep hums.

As she touches on throughout the album with the soldier motif, Sade Adu has been through plenty in the past few years: “My heart has been a lonely warrior before” she notes in the album’s final few seconds on “The Safest Place.” There’s hurt, there’s sorrow, there’s love and pain. But above all, there are stories that transcend conventional radio-ready pop tales. As Sade notes of this new release, “I only make records when I feel I have something to say. I’m not interested in releasing music just for the sake of selling something. Sade is not a brand.”

More often, Sade’s icy vocals are merged with the sweetest of sounds as with “Skin,” one of the slinkiest numbers. “Now as I begin to wash you off my skin / I’m gonna peel you away / ‘Cause you’re not right within,” Adu sadly coos as the smooth, creamy texture of the track washes in and out of the stratosphere.

Sensual. Devastating. Searching, Inspiring. Each track of the album carries its own wide array of emotion and sound, neither contemporary nor classic, reminding us that good music–true, real music, will always withstand the test of time.

While we may not hear from the band for another ten years (please don’t do it again!), Sade have granted us a record in Soldier of Love that stands to fend for itself and march forward for years to come.

Click here to watch Sade‘s incredible mini-documentary tracking the creation of Soldier of Love, their first album in a decade. It’s a longer video, but it offers a rare glimpse into a recording studio filled with talented musicians working to make real musical magic.

Some of the greatest highlights here are Sade Adu’s many quotable offerings, including her own self-analysis:

I didn’t ever want to be a singer. I ended up being a singer. I mean, I’ve developed skills I suppose, over the years. I’m more capable than I used to be. I’m more able to express what I want to. I’m less limited, but I’ve never had the aspirations that a lot of singers have and that’s probably why I’m quite, in some ways, uncomfortable with the fame.

There’s something completely rejuvenating and heartwarming about watching this talented bunch at work, a sentiment that later echoes in Adu’s reflections:

I do feel a responsibility, when we’re making music, to create something with love in it, so I think people can then feel it, and that’s what you’re giving them. I’m never flippant about music. What we do is always like a mission, a task which I don’t undertake lightly.

Sade’s Soldier of Love will be released on February 8 worldwide, and February 9 in the US.

Check out the newly uploaded video for “Soldier of Love,” Sade‘s first single in a decade.

Sade herself looks as gorgeous as ever. I love the lush feel of the warm color palette against the violent, raging storms in the background–very striking visually.

The video’s focus on sharp, militant choreography and slow-mo imagery (the lasso moments being particularly iconic) are proof that you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars to produce a quality video.

By the way, did anyone else find the lyrics more poignant in visual form? I feel like they’ve never resonated as strongly with me as they do after having watched the video.

I’ve lost the use of my heart, but I’m still alive…