Hailing from Manchester, J-Walk have produced with A
Night On The Rocks one of the most fascinating
dance albums this year. In the same way Royksopp’s
beautiful Melody
A.M. took club flavours to a different level,
J-Walk’s A Night On The Rocks feeds on
some of the many incarnations of the genre, from lounge-core
to disco and from dub to epic Northern soul. The fruit
of two years spent in the studio, this album is a fascinating
journey through the ages.
J-Walk formed in the mid nineties, when Fat City’s
Friends & Family club night’s resident DJ
Martin Brew and studio recluse Martin Desai met. The
band released a couple of EPs shortly after getting
together, but it would take nearly five years before
the now legendary Soul Vibration EP, only made
available in very small quantities in selected record
shops, made a splash and became an instant classic.
French Letter followed a year later and was
equally well received, raising the band’s profile
in the process.
The duo mostly opt here for cinematic atmospheres, working
their influences into a series of chilled moments, cleverly
injecting elements of electo, funk and disco to lift
up their basic melodies. The summery Tearaway
with its cascades of xylophones and coffee table feel
invites the listeners to relax and take it easy from
the start. Soul Vibration continues on the
same line, as a repetitive line clings onto a delicate
background and follows its every variation. Elbow singer
Guy Garvey lends his voice to the fragile Cariad,
giving it incredible density and challenging J-Walk’s
evocative talent with his own. The darkest moment of
the album is to be found with Petrified Blues.
Here, Brew and Desai are seen intentionally getting
lost on inhospitable grounds for a moment while entirely
retaining control on their composition. On the opposite
side of the scope are the fiery funk/soul infused Scarlet
Menace, which features a superb vocal performance
from Veba, and the disco delight Heaven’s
Above. The two best moments of A Night On The
Rocks are the elliptic Another Lover,
with its monumental chorus and slight decadent eighties
electro feel reminiscent Soft Cell or Human League,
and the magnificent harpsichord-led French Letter
and delightful arrangements, providing this album with
its most uplifting moment.
A Night On The Rocks is the sound of now, and
has the urgency of good nights out. With this first
album, J-Walk have developed their sound in extremely
clever fashion, providing a perfect end-of-the-night
soundtrack. Come downs have never felt so good.
5/5 |
