Lemon Jelly - 'Lost Horizons' (XL)
4/5
By: Toby L
'If it looks beautiful and it sounds beautiful? It's Lemon Jelly,' brag those behind the electronica/gentle-dance maestros, Fred Deakin and Nick Franglen. With 'Lost Horizons', the 'Jelly find themselves entering long-awaited second album-territory, whilst successfully avoiding the negative predicament that they could have easily found themselves within as depicted in the LP-title.
Its eight tracks simply resonate subtle classiness, stretches and plains of sax cascading against backdrops of easing synths and keys, clapping percussion and smothering acoustic-guitars. And, oh, did we mention the voice-samples - enough carefully installed and placed to allow The Avalanches to raise a suspect eyebrow in response.
From the wheel-in entrance of 'Elements' and dreamy doze of 'Space Walk', what may on first sight appear mildly tame is soon exchanged for an irreverent take on sounding like methods of transport ('Return To Patagonia'), the glorious closer 'The Curse of Ka'Zar' as compellingly long-winded, overblown and epic as they come, with choral-chants and brass all the while. Watch out for the soaring peaks of 'Closer', elsewhere - which may disturb some as much as they captivate others.
A focussed follow-up to their cult-debut 'Lemonjelly.ky', every moment is calculated bliss - and as elevating and joyous as solely mechanical-engineered music can become. 'Pioneers' could be a fitting title for both Messieurs Deakin and Franklin.
Artists in this article: Lemon Jelly
Your Feedback
Login to post your comment