Soul Sound

"Soul Sound" received mixed to positive reviews from critics. The Sunday Mirror's Ian Hyland rated the song nine out of ten stars and described it as "[p]ure class from the ever-smiling teens".[9] According to AllMusic's Dean Carlson, "Soul Sound" is a representation that "the jitters of youth are [on One Touch] though tempered by shrewd ambition and a clever and unpredictable production aesthetic".[10] John Mulvey of NME stated that while the song lacked the quality of the trio's debut single "Overload", it "is pretty good nevertheless".[8] He elaborated, "the best thing about Sugababes is how they sound like they really can't be arsed with anything, let alone any of this pop star business [...] Enough with the dance routines and shit-eating grins—does this mean total lack of enthusiasm's the way forward for teen pop?"[8] Stylus Magazine writer Scott Plagenhoef described the single as "marvelous lilting [and] hopeful",[11] while Stephen Robinson from Hot Press was less favourable and criticised the song's pop-rock experimentation, which according to him "doesn't work quite so well".[7] Neil Western of the South China Morning Post felt that "Soul Sound", along with the album's title track, "lack sparkle".[12]

The song was released in the United Kingdom on 16 July 2001 as the fourth and final single from One Touch. Upon release, it debuted and peaked at number thirty on the UK Singles Chart, the group's lowest-charting single in the United Kingdom at the time.[13] In the UK, "Soul Sound" is one of the group's lowest-selling singles to date.[14] Unlike the previous singles from One Touch, "Soul Sound" failed to make an impact on the Irish Singles Chart.[15] The song earned the Sugababes a 2001 MTV Awards nomination for Best European Single.[16]

The accompanying music video for "Soul Sound" was directed by Max & Dania and filmed in London.[17] Band member Siobhán Donaghy stated that around the time of the video's filming, her and the other group members were not performing as a group frequently: "It's been fairly quiet recently, but it usually is between singles. The other two have been doing their exams, and I have been doing some interviews for newspapers and magazines abroad. Apart from the video for 'Soul Sound' we have not been doing too much together."[18] During the video, the group's members are featured in an apartment and are seated on couches and chairs.[19] The plot involves their inner souls being released by the music, while outside in the neighbourhood the music takes control of other people's lives and causes their souls to be lifted too.[19] The video was included on the CD release of "Soul Sound".[20]

In a 2020 interview on Clara Amfo's "This City" podcast, Keisha recalled that during the filming of the video, the group had their first true "music industry" moment, where she felt the record label executives were trying to mould the group into something it wasn't. "We were told, you've got to smile, you've got to be more smiley [in this video]. When I look at that moment, that was the start of trying to be controlled. Whereas, up until that point, we were... just being ourselves. I remember them saying, you guys need to be more approachable. The more voices that were coming in, the more it was about needing to smile more." Siobhan chimed in: "I didn't love the Soul Sound video, probably for that very reason."[21]

The Sugababes played "Soul Sound" on 27 March 2001 at Manchester Ampersand, in conjunction with many of the album's tracks such as "Overload" and "Run for Cover".[22] This was their second-ever live performance, which was sponsored by NME. Donaghy commented,

We were very lucky that the tour was done in conjunction with NME, and it meant that we were playing to an older audience. We never set out to appeal to under-10s, because of the kind of stuff we listened to ourselves. If we manage to incorporate even a hint of that in our own music, we should appeal to quite an adult audience. We were all very nervous at all the gigs, but that was just because we were so worried about it going well.[22]

According to Kitty Empire of NME, during the performance, "'Soul Sound' [grew] lovelier with every croon of its chorus".[22] Later that month, the trio performed the song at London's Notre Dame Hall as part of a set list.[23] The Guardian's John Aizlewood commented that during its performance, the group "[created] a tidal wave of melody".[23]