Jamie Lidell Compass (Warp)
4/5
By: Jen Long
I’m not sure why Rockfeedback sent me this record. If you’ve met me and noted my bruised shins, cut off jeans and band t-shirts, it’s pretty obvious I’m not that into soul. I was going to decline this review and send the CD back, but then I thought no; I’m a moderately capable journalist with an ever so slightly above average vocabulary. I’m going to import this album into my iTunes and just bloody see what happens, OK?
I’m joking of course (well apart from the vocabulary bit. Even though Jamie Lidell isn’t the kind of music I’d usually listen to, I do have a huge amount of respect for the guy. As with the majority of artists on Warp (this is his fourth album for the label) his music can’t be pigeonholed. I might be able to label him a soul singer, but there’s a lot more to Compass than some straight up silvery crooning.
Lidell is known for creating backing tracks out of his own sampled vocals, and there are some great sounds on this record. The opening riff on ‘The Ring’ takes the definition of immediate and processes it to an attention grabbing high, and I swear somewhere on this album I caught a cow impression.
In fact, there’s only one thing this record has that can outnumber its striking sounds, and that’s fresh ideas. Each track is littered with them. It’s safe to say that Lidell lost his song writing templates a while back, and thank God - I hate listening to an album that sounds like the same song eleven times, and there’s no risk of that happening here. Every track is a mini masterpiece in its own right. I feel like part of this can be awarded to the excellent and innovative production from Beck (‘Your Sweet Boom’ even sounds like something off Odelay), but this is definitely Lidell’s record.
With a strong personality such as Beck behind the desk and a passion for progressive music running through the album, there’s a chance Compass could feel a little lost in itself, but the key that holds it all together is Lidell’s voice. It’s distinctive, soaring and instantly affecting. Even if you’re the hardest of rock fans, give this record a go. It may get labelled soul, but in reality, it just has one hell of a lot of it.
Artists in this article: Jamie Lidell
Your Feedback
Login to post your comment