Junior Boys - So This Is Goodbye (Domino)
4/5
By: Tom Hocknell
This is not strictly a new album, but a re-release of the Junior Boys 2nd LP from last year. Domino are evidently disgruntled with its criminally poor showing and have repackaged it with an accompanying CD of remixes and 're-version's, which is like being forced to point to a new haircut that people should have noticed anyway. This smacks not of desperation to gain return on investment, but instead the genuine desire to right a wrong. There is however a well-populated road of album wrecks that should have performed better... so why should we care?
The original album opens with Double Shadow, at first a staccato-like, slow building track that morphs into a driving groove of whispered vocals and deep bleeps. If Kylie wants to work with credible producers for her comeback, she could do far worse than Junior Boys. Next is 'The Equalizer', which despite its title sounding like a lost track from Euphoria vol. 4, is terrifically lush and poetic electronica, reels dripping in soul, with the mantra of 'Springtime, you're going to wish that we were friends, you'll never feel so sure again' positively drenched in hope, like Kraftwerk joining forces with 'Rumours' era Fleetwood Mac. These first two tracks are quite unique, produced with a horizon beyond the charts, autumnal house influenced tunes. The closest comparison is the Kings of Convenience's remix album, 'Versus'. These similarities are most clear on electro-disco king, Morgan Geist's mix of 'Equalizer' (on the accompanying disc) who collaborated on Orland Oye's solo album.
'Count Souvenirs' has the sort of burbling Balearic-vibe Lemon Jelly used to capture, and here the plaintive lyrics are imbued with meaning through an echoed voice shadowing the lead. It's organic, with a depth and attention to detail reminiscent of mavericks, and it has to be said increasingly unhinged perfectionists such as the Blue Nile, Talk Talk or Paddy McAloon. It's immaculate.
After the ubiquity of the single, 'In The Morning' comes the broken romance of 'So This Is Goodbye', which, with its title in the first lyric line, joins layers of snyths and organic keyboard motifs, soaring over a bass line so cheeky liberal MPs might pinch it. 'Like A Child' continues the lullaby-like atmosphere. These songs are not too long, an indulgence too frequently visited by studio boffins too stoned or too accustomed to stretching out lucrative dance mixes to know when to stop.
It's a strange, unpolluted place Junior Boys come from - and I don't mean Canada. This music sits outside the easily delineated subgenres of dance music and overcomes them, and as such this is not the usual collection of singles associated with 'dance' albums, in fact one would be hard pushed to choose a single from here. Perhaps it's the live Linn drums, the simplicity, and the elegantly mournful flute that gives this album such a sense of organic Northern loss. These are not instrumentals or dance workouts, but strong, well-constructed songs. On the attached additional disc it is Hot Chip's mix of 'In the Morning', which is a highlight, one which respects the vocal and underlines the mysterious defeat of its 'I'll never love again/until you say I can' lyric. However, once again, it's barely suited for the dance floor. Other highlights are the Tensnake mix of FM, a space disco treatment, with a minimal groove and the new versions from iTunes sessions.
Watch the video to 'In The Morning' HERE.
Artists in this article: Junior Boys
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