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You are here -> Music / Albums Monday, 08 September, 2008
PLANETNOTION TELEVISION!
CAMERA-FOLK AND FILM EDITORS WANTED!
Planet Notion is looking for guys and dolls to film and edit features for its new TV channel, PNTV. Accompanying Notion to artist interviews, gigs, fashion shows, festivals and international events, you will be skilled, passionate and full of ideas about how to produce shit-hot video content. Camera-folk will be experienced and ideally have their own equipment, or at least access to equipment, while editors must be able to turn projects around quickly, and with stylistic flare. If you can both film and edit content, we would especially like to hear from you! These casual, unpaid positions would be ideal for those looking to develop their showreels, and to get the chance to travel, film major artists and top events.
 
Please email lucy@musichqmedia.com if you’re interested in getting involved, cheers!
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Hip Hop
The Metaphorcast
Reain AKA Wha's His Face
Stand Alone Recordings
Hip Hop
tags: | reain | reain news | reain latest | reain aka wha’s his face | more...

Folk/Rock/Pop
Roses Kings Castles
Roses Kings Castles
The Sycamore Club
Folk/Rock/Pop
I am the music man, I come far away and I can play: Pretty much sod all; a claim I couldn’t lay on ‘That Drummer From Babyshambles.’ Planet Notion refers of course to Adam Ficek and his first solo album, released under the guise Roses Kings Castles. The album sees Ficek take up the mantel of singer, strummer and everything in between, spread across ten tracks of melodious-folk and sweet-pop. It’s an indication of Ficek’s ability away from the media storm of Babyshambles and frontman Pete Doherty; an indication that there’s more to Ficek than his Other Band. The question is: How much more? Firstly, a gentle strumming relative to the folk revival is continual throughout the album, accompanying Ficek’s whispering vocals; the lyrics ranging from longing and deep to occasionally comical. Secondly, there’s no escaping the influence of Babyshambles, particularly on tracks such as ‘Horses’ with its Dohertyesque (sic) harmonica breaks. Thirdly, if you’re after the rock-tinged sound you’d expect from the drummer of one of Britain’s most infamous bands, you’ll be bitterly disappointed. Roses Kings Castles is a completely different ball game altogether; a softer, more whimsical affair. Think a Pete Doherty acoustic-solo, minus the scuzzy lyrics and with the kind of musical accompaniment a baby would happily doze off to, and you’re someway there. You see, Roses Kings Castles’ music is a wee bit wet, kinda like Ficek the solo artist is around the ears. Don’t get us wrong, Roses Kings Castles shows occasional glimpses of magic, especially when delving into subtle undertones of soul and psychedelica, most notably on the psych-tinged ‘Fool’s Revenge’ - one of the finest tracks on the album. But as a whole, Ficek’s side-project is a bit too chirpy. I guess if you want ‘nice’ music for ‘nice’ people. Adam Ficek is your man. If you’re a miserable twat like Planet Notion, it probably won’t cut the mustard. DD Roses Kings Castles is released on Adam Ficek’s record label, The Sycamore Club, October 6th.
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Soul/Funk/Roots Reggae
Calypsoul 70: Caribbean Soul 1969 - 1979
Various Artists
Universal Music
Soul/Funk/Roots Reggae
People who say: “Went to the Caribbean for two weeks,” usually follow it up with: “It was amazing” and garner the kind of reaction you’d get if you told people aliens had turned your cat into a Rice Krispie Square. Everyone wants to go to the Caribbean because (A) it looks great, and (B) it means you’ve probably reached the pinnacle of the financial pyramid. Unfortunately not all of us have reached that pinnacle; in fact a lot of us are still stuck at the bottom with all the Geckos and Camel dung. Enter ‘Calypsoul 70’, an album that brings the soul and flavour of the Caribbean direct to YOU! albeit without tasty cocktails, sandy beaches, and really happy locals. In a nutshell, Calypsoul 70 is a compilation encapsulating the broad-spectrum of Caribbean sounds; we’re talking traditional steel bands, roots reggae, and the more recent influences of disco, funk, and soul. This here hack wouldn’t normally purchase an album called Calypsoul 70; it sounds like one of those 20p flat cola drinks they used to sell in the school canteen – bringing bad memories flooding back like a savage No.2 following the flush of badly blocked toilet. Thing is, Calypsoul 70 is so damn cheerful that I couldn’t help shaking imaginary maracas and wiggling my butt-cheeks like a pair of fighting ferrets. Sure, some tracks, like Biosis Now’s ‘Independent Bahamas’, start to grate at the four-minute mark when they go all 80s cop show, but who gives a damn when you’ve got wonderfully uplifting tunes like opener ‘The Little You Say’? Calypsoul 70 may not be the perfect compilation, but it’s guaranteed to bring a little ray of sunshine to your life; even if you do live in a shitty flat in Yarm, where rain’s as common as Chlamydia and people greet you with a grunt. Dangerous Dave Calypsoul 70 (Caribbean Soul: 1969 – 1979) is released on September 2nd.
tags: | calypsoul 70 | more...
Mish-Mash
The London Book of the Dead
The Real Tuesday Weld
Antique Beat
Mish-Mash
Clearly at odds with commerciality and bosom buddies with pretentiousness, Stephen Coates enfolds simple electronica with jazz improvisations and ragtime samples. A heavyweight concept relying on the philosophies of the Tibetan Book of the Dead, and coloured by the birth of his son and the death of his father in quick succession, it’s a surprisingly fleet listen. Though there are elements of melancholy in the timbre and tone of instrumentation, there seems to be a joyous and celebratory mood across a lot of the album. It almost seems tongue-in-cheek – who would dare throw fiddle solos in the middle of a whispered vocal waltz? – which lifts it above its potentially depressing subject matter. It’s achingly geriatric in places, retreating into a bygone age, and a glimpse of a world far removed from the one we’re now used to. Perhaps that’s the point. It provides a journey away from the nuances and pressures of modern music genres, allowing for personal and difficult subject matter to be tackled without embarrassing musical faux-pas. To its detriment, it’s pretty hard to relate to, whilst still being a relatively enjoyable listen. ‘Last Words’ is by far the most straightforward track, and is most haunting in its falsetto delivery and gentle guitar arpeggio. While some artists could be accused of being obtuse with this approach, there’s a genuine love and passion that emanates from these notes and arrangements. Coates is working with what he knows, in a way that pleases him. Admirable? Definitely. Listenable? Yes, but approach with open minds and hearts. BB A limited edition version of The London Book of The Dead will be released exclusively via Antique Beat on September 15th. The CD will be presented in a full colour hard back book with artwork by Catherine Anyango and exclusive texts. To pre-order a copy, CLICK HERE .
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Blues/Rock/Psychedelic
Free Your Mind and Win a Pony
Golden Animals
Happy Parts Recordings
Blues/Rock/Psychedelic
If I did free my mind, would I win a pony? And would that be an actual pony, or 25 quid? I’m already confused over whether I want the pony or money. I could get more than £25 if I sold the pony for glue, but that would go against my brains newly found hippie freedom. Tiz a quandary, and one which doesn’t really get answered on this album. Other questions are answered, such as what influenced the duo to record these songs: A place where a lazy old freight train chugs by; a pure nature wilderness; a few chillums; and some old records by The Doors and Crazyhorse too… Probably. But playing the hippie card is the joker in their hand, because Golden Animals' songs, although full of languid rhythms and stoned wisdom, aren’t really hippie, per se. For instance on ‘My Friend Bill’, bill is rhymed with hill is rhymed with pill in a way that reminds me of Morrison's folly into commercialism; compounded by the lizard kingesque baritone and infectious nursery rhyme melody. Elsewhere, on songs such as ‘Try on Me’ and ‘My My My’, the twinning of Tommy Eisner’s (USA) guitars and Linda Beecroft’s (Sweden) drums roll out tunes that get stuck in your throat with the catchiness of a fish bone. But for me the true hot rock on this album is the closer, ‘Darkness and Light’. Its woozy vocal harmonies and lush rhythm invokes memories of a hot day spent with your favourite girl, a glass of iced coke, and a lump of opium. So far I’ve listened to the album a lot; ­driving around under clear blue skies with a breeze blowing through the windows and, well, it’s almost as good as not doing anything at all. Almost. Paul Crompton Golden Animals debut album, Free Your Mind and Win a Pony, is released on Happy Parts Recordings, August 4th. For more information, visit the Golden Animals MySpace page.
tags: | golden animals | more...
Hip Hop
Half Past Calm
Jon Phonics
Ill Smith Productions
Hip Hop
Hip hop ain’t my falte. I say “ain’t”, as opposed to “isn’t”, because it makes me seem “down with the kids” and makes it look like I have some semblance of knowledge on urban music; which in fairness, I suppose I do… I’m aware that there are hip hop artists who don’t just reel off lyric after lyric on waggling a “loaded piece” in some poor bastard’s face like it’s cool to be Public Enemy No.1; and I know enough to know that I prefer hip hop that falls under this category. Thankfully, producer Jon Phonics is an artist against the insanity of gang-culture; therefore he gets an instant thumbs-up. Even when he talks about the violence on the streets, he raises the all important question: What’s the friggin’ point in it all? Phonics views it with the same puzzled glare as the majority of the nation, and you listen to his lyrics because you get a genuine sense he’s experienced it all; that he MCs from the heart. However, his lyrics aren’t limited to just the one subject; Phonics also draws on the ‘State of Hip Hop’ on aptly named opening track, um, ‘State of Hip Hop’. Every track on ‘Half Past Calm’ is perfect fodder for the warm-up or chill-down period of any club-night, with edgy, often brooding beats, and fuzzy, soulful scores throughout. Alternatively, ‘Half Past Calm’ would be just as suitable for a night in with a Family Bucket; chilling with a big reefer and watching yet another repeat of Sexcetra on your digi-box. Phonics has drafted in the crème de la crème of the MCing circuit, with the likes of Triple Darkness, Verb T, Mr. Drastik, M9INE, and Luc Skyz, offering guest vocals. But its Phonics’ work as a producer that sets this debut apart from anything else; from the openers emotional flutes and harps, through to piano-driven track ‘The Lion’s Den’, each song is a polished and varied journey. Will I give hip hop more of a chance in the future? On the evidence of ‘Half Past Calm’, I don’t see why not…
tags: | jon phonics | more...
House/Electro/Other
X-Press2
Raise Your Hands: The Greatest Hits
Skint
House/Electro/Other
Now on Skint records, Xpress2 pre-empt the Chemical Brothers ’ imminent collection, as the 2nd wave of dance ‘best of’s’ arrive. This mixes Xpress2’s bigger name collaborations with earlier dance-floor monsters such as ‘London Express’ and, appropriately, ‘Smoke Machine’, which both emerge pleasingly from the dry ice of woolly clubbing memories. Leading with the droll David Byrne-led ‘Lazy’ risks setting a high standard early, but actually provides lesser known gems greater voice, its over familiarity detracting from how jaw-droppingly good it was that first time we heard it. In established dance music tradition, compensating for their facelessness, Xpress2 have roped in such an impressive line-up of singers that, as with other dance outfits, one suspects they exist solely to enable working with heroes. The grindingly buil t gospel house epic, ‘Give it’, is characterised by Lambchop s’ Kurt Wagner’s wry, soulful vocal; while the deep er, hypnotic cut of ‘Kill 100’, with Music ’s Rob Harvey , and ‘Witchi Tai To’s euphoric Balearic electronic sweep, completed by Polyphonic Spree man Tim De Laughter ’s gorgeous vocal , all shine. Obligatory new track, ‘Fire’, has Afrika Bambaataa wrestling with what began as an instrumental favourite in DJ sets and sits firmly in their home-pressed white label origins. Any weakness of this collection is that it’s less representative of Ashley Beadle’s joyful affection for old school pianos, and the omission of their eccentric, whispered collaboration with Yello ’s Dieter Meier, which gives way to tracks like ‘AC/DC’, which perhaps only make sense in the environment they were intended for. Tom Hocknell
tags: | x-press2 | more...
80s/Electro/Dance
Flight Night
Muddyloop
Muddytrax Recordings
80s/Electro/Dance
80s nostalgia has a place in every twenty-something guy or gals heart. Who doesn’t get a wee butterfly in their stomach and a need to do the ‘Robo Cop’ when Tears for Fears’ Shout comes on or Prince starts singing about Purple Rain and Bambi? The subject of the 'Elven One' leads us nicely onto Metro Williams and Blonde Peterson, otherwise known as Muddyloop; a duo attempting to play time-machine with the poor frazzled brains of the dance fraternity, and send them zooming straight back to a bygone period of The Raggy Dolls and Poodle Perms. You see, Muddyloop’s debut album, Flight Night, was very much inspired by the likes of Prince and 80s era Michael Jackson; couple this with a love of electro grooves and 80s synths and you’ve got an album so soaked in sweaty sex and a Super-Soaker squirt of cum, you’ll need a bulk order from the Kleenex factory and still have to pop down the 24-hour Garage for more. ‘I Could Do Things 2 U’ is a track that does what it says on the tin. It’s literally about a guy who ‘wants to do things’ to a girl he’s got his beady eyes on; and we don’t mean take her down the cinema to see The Jungle Book 3, followed by a tasty meal in Nando’s. The rest of the album is in much the same vein... Fans of cheesy-electro with a generous dollop of 80s dance will want to make love to Flight Night over and over and over again. Those without a sense of humour and a yearning to hit the town and “pull a hot chick” will despise it. We shouldn’t like Flight Night, but the fact it doesn't take itself too seriously means that we fucking do! Dangerous Dave Muddyloop's debut album, Flight Night, is available now on Muddytrax Recordings. Click here to buy. www.muddyloop.com / www.myspace.com/muddyloop . To read Planet Notion’s interview with the boys, Click here .
tags: | muddyloop | more...
Punk-pop
Red, Yellow and Blue
Born Ruffians
Warp
Punk-pop
Their simultaneous breakthroughs onto the Skins-approved indie scene make it pretty difficult not to compare Born Ruffians to darlings du jour Vampire Weekend. There are certainly moments where the two bands do sound alike – not least singer Luke LaLonde’s strained vocals – but the aptly named Toronto three-piece have thrown out the glossy production and Afro-influence in favour of something altogether scruffier, and, well, more interesting. There is a childish exuberance that runs throughout ‘Red, Yellow and Blue’: from the primary colour theme to song titles like ‘Barnacle Goose’, ‘Badonkadonkey’ and ‘Red Elephant’; from the joyous group yelps that form the backing vocals of most tracks to the cheeky adolescent-themed lyrics that fill them. It’s an album absolutely bursting with boyish energy, right down to the tinny guitar and jerky rhythms and this, mixed with Rusty Santos’ undercooked production, means Born Ruffians end up sounding something like a garage indie-pop band. The painfully good trio of ‘Barnacle Goose’, single ‘Hummingbird’ and sing-along anthem ‘I Need A Life’ provide the early album fuel, the latter issuing the slacker call to arms: “The sun is shining but we stay inside, oh but we go out at night”. But there are tracks that (despite some overlong intros) reach out and grab you throughout, in particular the vulpine love song ‘Foxes Mate For Life’ and nursery rhyme-like ‘Badonkadonkey’. ‘Red, Yellow and Blue’ sounds like it was damned fun to make and it could just be that it’s even more fun to listen to. Chris Helsen
tags: | born ruffians | more...
Electronic
Los Angeles
Flying Lotus
Warp
Electronic
Warp’s recent rock renaissance with guitar-based acts such as Battles, the omnipresent cash-cow that is Maximo Park and recently signed post prog-rockers Pivot may have had fans wondering if this was a perhaps a new direction for the label. With their latest high profile release coming in the form of the sophomore album from 21st century beat magician Flying Lotus, it seems its business as usual for the label that brought you electronic pioneers Aphex Twin, Autechre and Nightmares on Wax. Following Flylo’s brilliantly received Reset EP for the label last October, Los Angeles shows this LA talent truly opening up to provide an emotional journey through off-kilter polyrhythms and aerial currents. From the bars of dramatic opener Brainfeeder , to the soothing loops of closing track Auntie’s Lock/Infinitum , Flying Lotus is on a deep groove. The Vangelis-like melodrama of Brainfeeder , all slow, jutting synths and emotional weight, crackles its wayinto the shaking kick-drum and steady rim-shots of Breathe Something/Stellar Star , with it’s soft bass licks reminiscent of early releases from Skam Records. Along with following track Beginners Falafel , the scene is set for the first section of the album; pitched down, tripped out beatery with a tough boom-bap edge. This combines perfectly with tracks like Melt! and Comet Course , the former of which melds the swagger of West Coast hip hop with carefully edited afro-beat rhythms and a deceptively killer atonal bass beat. This is music drenched in the sunshine of the American west coast, the skipping ride of Comet Course pertaining to the ambiance of a busy LA morning, whilst, referencing the astrophysical journeys of jazz great Pharoah Sanders. The dual themes of sunshine and light are carried on in the dilated atmospherics of ambient interludes such as Orbit 405 , with its stuttering bass notes layered with as much crackle and reverb as you could wish for, before the truly blissed out sunset-vibes and organic ballin’ of other album highlight Golden Diva come into play . With its click-clack snare, melodic looped keys and vocal snippets, Golden Diva demonstrates Flylo’s skill in subtly building a track through use of echo and layering, the listener being slowly transported to different sections of the composition, yet only really noticing at the last minute. The dreamlike outro of Golden Diva leads us to the crushing bass stomp of Riot ,which comes through with treated vocal samples and background electronics, with a melody constructed from aggressive doubled-up ringing effects and a jangled guitar sample, before a brief sample of Vincent Price’s psychotic cackle from Thriller is subsumed by an apocalyptic, staggering beat. It’s this manner of suddenly switching directions in a track that creates openness within the album, almost as if the tracks constitute a collection of intricately developed sketches. This is echoed again in GNG BNG where a steady-rolling back-snapping bounce is coupled with a looped sitar sample, before being replaced by a damagingly echoed boom-bap rhythm and devilish bass track reminiscent of a beefed-up, crunked out Eric B beast. This ability to make devastating party numbers, yet remain a master of subtle ambient layering is one of many similarities Flying Lotus shares with that UK genius of bass driven emotional fallout, Burial. If Burial’s dark, mournful compositions, peppered with glowing embers of warmth and soul are the negative image, Flying Lotus provides the positive. This is something Flylo picks up on in conversation, his friendly demeanour belaying the emotional content within his music. “When I heard Burial in LA, I thought y’know (sic) ‘yeah man, this is good, this is nice’ but I only picked up on the layering when I was in London, and then I was like ‘this is the sound of this place”. So does this suggest that geography could possibly work against the universality of music? No. For Flying Lotus it’s about the individual journey of the listener; “I didn’t want to make it too specific, I wanted to keep it open to the listener and ensure there was space for the person to travel within the music. But I do think this record makes most sense in LA, because I made it when I was dying out there in the sun y’know?” This deeply cinematic, even visual aspect to Los Angeles runs throughout the record, invoking psychedelic snippets of its namesake and mixing them into one cohesive whole. A mixture of atmospheric evocations and versatile influences places the album next to David Holmes’s groundbreaking Lets Get Killed , yet the influence runs far deeper than that, with anyone from David Axelrod to Fela Kuti being mixed into a portrait of musical synaethesia. However, this is not a record simply reflecting time, place or even geography, for Flying Lotus, the journey undertaken in his music is deep;“making a record is like a journal y’know? It’s a reflection of where you are at that time. This record definitely has more of my personal experience in it than my debut, both good and bad.” Some of this bad experience could be related to the recent death of his great-aunt, the revered jazz organist, harpist and pianist Alice Coltrane. This is touched upon in Aunties Harp , a track that is a fitting collaboration between the two, revolving a sample of the late Miss Coltrane’s harp over the top of a mesmerising, rattlling rhythm, before falling into the creeping double bass and beautifully smoked-out vocals of Gonja Sufi on Testament . It is this second string to the Flying Lotus bow that demonstrates his real versatility. Tracks like Testament and Roberta Flack (a tribute to the much-sampled jazz and soul vocalist), with its revolving vibes and bubbling, dusty bass, transport the listener to sunnier climes, whilst Sleepy Dinosaur is a stuttering, spitting, coughing track of which Dilla would be proud. With Lotus’s rich musical heritage, it’s no surprise he’s produced an album of such obvious depth and versatility, demonstrated again on the beautiful closing track Aunties Lock/Infinitum . It’s this track that points the way forward for Flying Lotus now, as a muted foot drum propels the soft looping keys and lullaby vocals of The Long Lost’s Laura Darlington, whilst a stammering hi-hat is lightly shaken over the track, creating a truly spellbinding way to end the record. With some exciting projects in the pipeline and a rumoured 2000 tracks on his hard drive, Flying Lotus is well on his way to mirroring both the critical and commercial success of his Warp peers. Los Angeles , an utterly enthralling record, is up there with the best of their output. Louis Cook
tags: | flying lotus | more...
Indie
The Hungry Saw
Tindersticks
Beggars Banquet
Indie
The title of this assured album sounds like a weapon from Itchy and Scratchy, a cartoon perfectly befitting the Tindersticks world, because its business as usual, with the Village People covers album remaining a long way off. Solo albums from singer Stuart Staples, since the last Tindersticks album in 2003, have apparently resulted in a new authority over their sound. Following the sparse, piano-led ‘Introduction’, ‘Tomorrows Yesterday’ reminds us Nick Cave has no monopoly on barroom, gothic-gloom, although the organ simmers wonderfully, before spilling into a brass-underpinned chorus, with palpable relief from the customarily weather-hewn vocal from Staples. The songs are delightfully ambiguous; such as the soft romanticism of the poetic single ‘The Flicker of a Little Girl’ complete with almost Motown backing oohs , or the heart shattering strings of ‘Come Feel The Sun’. It’s always sad to see great titles wasted, and ‘E-type’ is neither an ode to the car, nor typeface, rather an instrumental looking for somewhere to take its soft mariachi horn. However with further highlights, of ‘Boobar’s echoed lead vocal, and the invisible duet of the lilting female vocal – all atmosphere, no words – of ‘All the love’, the reshuffled Tindersticks remain a shadowy presence, until the epic closer ‘The Turns We Took’. It’s magnificent, life-affirming pop that The Guillemots sometimes touch, and, finally the band arrives; it’s muscularly sublime. Over gentle backing vocals, string harmonies and tightly woven guitar, Stuart Staples narrates an enigmatic story, and it serves as the starting place to win new fans. TH
tags: | tindersticks | more...
Funk and Soul
Fallin' Off the Reel 2
Selected Artists
Truth and Soul
Funk and Soul
Modern funk and soul appears to have been swept under the ‘mainstream’ rug like traces of a 4am kebab on your mother’s favourite carpet. That’s why DJs who specialise in funk and soul have to dig, delve and fight for modern vinyl; it’s such a niche market. All the decent stuff is few and far between; unique and often rare. Brooklyn-based Truth and Soul Records, one of the finest producers of modern funk and soul, have released their second compilation ‘Fallin’ Off the Reel Volume 2’. I know, I know: it’s a compilation and compilations are generally bad - if you liked a particular song by a particular artist you’d probably own their album anyway, right? The difference is that Truth and Soul are renowned for releasing music on limited edition 45 singles that never exceed 2000 pressed. It’s akin to popping down the supermarket and picking up some Evian after a code red terror warning; you’re going to have a bit of trouble. ‘Fallin’ Off the Reel 2’ is an opportunity for collectors who missed out on tracks to get their hands on them, or for those poor souls that don’t own a record player to become acquainted with the finest in modern funk and soul; and boy is it a fine collection. In a nutshell it’s a host of artists from Truth and Soul delving into everything from Latin-funk to the kind of funk beats you’d associate with Crockett and Tubbs in the ghettos of Miami Vice or Tarantino’s Jackie Brown. There are old favourites including ‘I Can’t Help Myself’ and an excellent version of Marvin Gaye’s ‘What’s Going On’, lovingly performed by artists with respect for the music and who, well, sing it with a lot of soul. We’re talking the likes of ‘Tyron Ashley’s Funky Music Machine’ and ‘Black Velvet’; a Cuban edge to the Latin-funk scores performed by the likes of ‘Bronx River Parkway’ – thrusting you into Little Havana with a fat cigar and a quart of rum. Wu-Tang’s Raekwon even gets involved for a hip hop score on the Pete Rock classic PJ’s – giving it a deep and funky edge. It’s a peculiar inclusion, granted, but it works surprisingly well surrounded by the more classic funk and soul fodder. If you haven’t heard of Truth and Soul before now, then Fallin’ Off the Reel 2 is the perfect way to become acquainted. Sexy, funky and smooth. A bit like yours truly on a Friday night… Dave Dryden www.truthandsoulrecords.com
tags: | truth and soul | more...
Folk
We Made This Ourselves
Essie Jain
The Leaf Label
Folk
Essie Jain is an Englishwoman in New York, and her debut album is most obviously inflicted with that ageless stigma – the ‘earnest’ pigeonhole. But does that equal ‘a second rate Joni’? The only real answer is one reasonably akin to sometimes yes, sometimes no. ‘We Made This Ourselves’ is melismatic, minimally scattered orchestrals, a bit of well-executed vibrato here and there and an occasional Baltic flair, seen clearest on ‘Talking’. And talking of the confines of labelling a new artist, the following words also come to mind: delicate, sombre, subtle, understated - but Joan As Police Woman’s ‘Real Life’ seems to work it a whole lot better in just under five minutes than this album can aspire to. There’s nothing wrong with Jain’s folk, it’s just not life-changing or even that affecting, despite the undeniable honesty – most notable on paean to the battle between alcohol and a partner, ‘Loaded’. The butterfly infused artwork says it all for mediocrity. The simple waltz metre of ‘Disgrace’ is impeccable and the vocals consistently wistful – but it’s just not engaging. And minimalism can also go one of two ways: beautifully built up intricacies, or something like a drone. Suffice to say, this is the latter, less varied, more self-resonant interpretation. Introversion aside, there’s no Joanna Newsom duck-like vocal quirk, nor can there be any valid claim that a Vashti Bunyan purity’s enough – because the listener wants more now, or at least this one does. Blame it on Cat Power. NS
tags: | essie jain | more...
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