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Good funk-inflected R&B is very tough to come by. That always makes finding a track like ‘Open Your Eyes’ all that much sweeter, because this track is absolutely fantastic regardless of genre. The production here is top notch, the musicianship is stellar and all that. But what really stands tall here is the songwriting. It’s got just the right amount of groove that your head will be bobbing in no time, the hook is off the charts and the great lyrics and vocals (think Nate Dogg singing for Maxwell’s band) are the icing on the cake.

Telos is out of Santa Fe and, while they consider themselves a jazz band with R&B influences, you can’t help but feel the neo-soul in this track. If more artists were like Telos, R&B and Soul would not be the wasteland of generic songs that it is today. Bands like these guys restore my faith that good R&B can still be found. Like a fine gem, you just have to dig a little.