Debut albums are usually predicted to be a musical playground - a place of artistic self-discovery that often brings to light things that are as exciting as they are half-baked. If this is the case, YALLEE have presumably skipped this developmental step. Because their recently released debut EP "Untold Stories" is evidence of an impressive musical maturity - and doesn't sound like a musical child's shoe at all.

But it's not as if the quintet from Dresden and Leipzig are not daring in terms of sound aesthetics: The six songs mix elements of jazz, neo soul, pop and R'n'B. The fact that a common thread can be recognized at all times is primarily due to the voice of lead singer Yelena Mashkaryan, whose warm timbre elevates the term "soul" to a new level of meaning.

In strong songs such as "Weary Eyes", "Ruminating" and "Say Not More", the band effortlessly masters the borderline between virtuosity, catchiness and groove. This is due first and foremost to Mashkaryan's four fellow musicians, whose instrumentation combines subtlety with character. And so, after two listens at the latest, it is clear that "Untold Stories" clearly stands out from the seemingly endless sea of new releases.