Nine years after putting the voices, sounds and atmosphere of the UK dance scene to music on his solo debut album, London's Jamie xx is back with a new album, "In Waves" - out on Friday.
"I wanted it to feel like one of my DJ sets, more reflective of a party that I would throw," says Jamie Smith, who adopted the last two letters of his stage name from The xx, the indie band with which he first gained fame.
Indeed from the first minute it does feel like the bouncer has just waved us through into the club. In 12 tracks, the record gives you the feeling that you could just as easily be on the dance floor raving, and not just wearing headphones on the train to work.
Jamie xx moves effortlessly between rhythms, tempos and subgenres. The album begins softly with "Wanna", with gentle piano notes setting the tone for the tracks to come. "Baddy On The Floor" is bursting with energy that wants to pull you onto the dancefloor.
Jungle, house, soul, big band music - Jamie xx is constantly weaving together different sounds. "There are different types of influence," Smith says of his music. His parents passed on an appreciation for jazz and soul. Two of his uncles were DJs themselves and gave him decks when he was 10 years old. "Then I would just play those records and learn how to mix."
He also listened to The Avalanches a lot, he says, the same Australian band that also features on the new track "All You Children".
The album's playful party atmosphere spills over into this track, with Jamie xx continuing his signature use of clips of spoken voices, this time repeating the phrase "All you children gather round, we will dance together."
His album was created during the pandemic, at a time when dancing together wasn't possible.
"Obviously, lots of bad stuff was going on during the pandemic," says the 35-year-old DJ and producer. "But personally, it was a very good place for me to just reflect and just gather myself and spend some time growing up from the teenager that I was throughout my 20s."
He now describes that time as crazy, since he was always thinking about the next gig in the next city. "As a result, I don't really remember that much of what was going on in my 20s."
The debut album by The xx was released in 2009. Since then, they have had more releases, both as a band and as solo projects. Jamie xx was the first to go solo, releasing his album “In Colour” in 2015. Alongside this, he also worked with musicians like Adele and Drake, and contributed to the individual projects of his bandmates.
Romy and Oliver Sim can also be heard on the track "Waited All Night" on his new album. "I can't imagine doing my own record without having them on it," he says of the two. "They're the reason why I get to do what I do."
New music with The xx is coming, Smith promises. The band still meet in the studio for a week once a month.
Black and white waves adorn the cover of the album, in keeping with the title "In Waves". This has several meanings, explains the DJ. The most basic is sound waves.
"But partly because I discovered surfing. It's a big part of my life." Surfing has given him space to think about music in a positive way, he says. The album was also created at a time when there were many ups and downs for him – different waves of life, as he says.
The time at home during the pandemic showed him that he considers himself very lucky to be able to do what he does. "At the moment, I'm on the top of a pretty good wave."
Local News
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