Genres: Electronic, Singer/songwriter, Dubstep
The cover photo doesn't really suit this electronic album but it comes close as the music is desolate and wintery. What James Blake does is take the dense ambient sound much like that of British dubstep artist Burial with less emphasis on two-step beats and more on ghostly processed vocals. He finds a decent range of intensities for this set-up and some pieces really click. The RZA shows up for the track 'Take a Fall for Me' and the punch with having a rapper as counter-point to Blake's vocals makes this a stand-out. This album is one that takes a few listens to really enjoy. The lyrics are very sparse as is the overall sound. Overall this is a good listen that builds on the work of others in a logical way. You can here influences from Tricky and Massive Attack scattered all over this album but Blake isn't showy or eclectic, he's very focused on a single mood. This constant desolate and pensive mood grated on me for the first listen but after the second go round I was much more at ease with it.Overall this was an interesting listen that didn't have any real missteps.
RATING: 3.5/5
Here is the video for James Blake's song 'Retrograde' from the album Overgrown
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