Review: City of Sin - Dutty Moonshine Big Band

As an act, Dutty Moonshine has gone through many different changes. I remember my first time seeing them – back when the act was a duo – at the first ever Swingamajig festival in 2013. I was lucky enough to catch founding member Furley’s last ever show at Boomtown 2014; and then the first performance of the big band at Swingamajig 2015 as well. Alongside several shows during Danny Wav’s brief stint with the act, and solo DJ sets from main man Mike Rack as well, I think I’ve seen pretty much every incarnation of the act. This new release – City of Sin, out on the 17^th of April – is their first on a major label, having just signed to Universal. Most Wanted, their previous album received some serious acclaim throughout the electro swing world, so needless to say, this album has been highly anticipated.

Opening the record is ‘Big Band Fam’, which features the type of colossal, heavy-bass sounds that one has come to expect from this act. These are the type of tunes that a DJ might generally choose to end a set, therefore demonstrating that with this release we’re getting thrown in the deep end from the very beginning. Both MCs feature on this track, with a clear grime influence in both of their respective flows, and musically, some of the sounds of garage throughout as well. The energy is maintained throughout ‘Click Clack Boom’, which begins with some almost synthwave-style sounds, before diving immediately back into the heavy, filthy bass. This track isn’t the most interesting in terms of independent listening, although I can tell it will be a dancefloor killer. Still not letting up in terms of energy, ‘City of Sin’ – the title track – brings some lightning-fast rapping from Maria Laveau, as well as some singing in the chorus, although strangely I actually find the verses catchier than the chorus.

At this point, the album has placed three of its heaviest tracks right at the very start, and I’m really craving something with a bit more emphasis on the ‘big band’ side of things; luckily, this now comes with ‘Outlaws’, a jazzier number which is much more to my liking. This track goes through several sections, each just as catchy and enjoyable as the last, and the big band really shine through, fusing effortlessly with the electronic sounds. In terms of danceability, ‘Outlaws’ will definitely get people moving. The next track, ‘Fever’, then provides a bit of respite from the chaos of the album thus far; beginning with the sounds of gypsy jazz, which sets the tone for the whole song, ‘Fever’ is comparatively laidback, and features a brilliant bassline showing that sometimes less is more. Towards the end, there’s a slightly cheesy key change, but honestly, this is part of the fun, and doesn’t detract from the song at all.

Even more laidback is ‘Tommy & Loretta’, featuring a wistful piano introducing a dark, partly spoken-word track, reminiscent of the poetry performed by the likes of Kate Tempest. This track is produced alongside Odjbox, who brings his own distinctive flavour, instantly recognisable once the beat kicks in, and features a lovely chorus – the best demonstration of Maria Laveau’s singing ability. ‘Fall From Grace’ begins with a baritone sax – capable of making everything sound so much jazzier, and also reminding me a bit of Too Many Zooz, who certainly sound like they could have had an influence on this one. In this track we’re slowly building back to the massive basslines found at the start of the album, although the brass sections are actually more interesting; whilst there are some huge drops throughout, I’m much keener on the parts that follow several bars after these drops. Following this is ‘The Arrest’, probably one of the strongest tracks on the album. It starts off almost cinematically, you can imagine this accompanying the score of a film, and as the piece progresses, there is some fantastic interplay between the two MCs. I especially like the refrain of “coming for you”, which makes me feel like I’m listening to something from a musical – tying in with the idea of this being a concept album.

The baritone sax returns for ‘It’s Alright’, also featuring more of the heavy basslines, which – not being as in-your-face as the rest of the album – actually work incredibly well here, and are the best example of these types of basslines throughout the album. Some nice and jazzy breakdowns in the middle do a good job of placing you into the scenario of the narrative again. Next up is a bit of a wildcard: ‘Fiança’ is entirely based around the Latin sounds of South America, and provides an example of what Dutty Moonshine does best – exploring and incorporating other styles, which this track demonstrates brilliantly. Guest vocalist Chininha provides another powerful female voice, and throughout I feel like I’m in a carnival atmosphere, and just want to dance. Towards the end, the samba influences only increase, and there’s some of the more contemporary sounds of soca in the final breakdown too. Closing the album is ‘Locked Up’, which unsurprisingly features some more strong rave influences, although not quite as heavy as I was expecting. Continuing on from the last track, there is actually still some samba influence, particularly in the percussion and woodwinds, which provides some contrast to the more industrial and glitchy sounds.

This album differs from Most Wanted in that – where with that album, the energy increased up until the mayhem of the final, title-track ‘Most Wanted’ – City of Sin actually seems to get slightly more mellow as it goes on. In that sense, the pacing of this album could be described as a little off – hitting you with everything at the start, and then leaving the album to gradually decline in its intensity. Although that’s perhaps an unfair criticism, as it’s not even remotely anticlimactic; in fact, the songs get better as the album progresses. There are some real gems here, and the likes of ‘Outlaws’, ‘Fever’, and ‘It’s Alright’ – amongst others – will surely become well-known anthems in this scene. City of Sin will be a welcome addition to any fan’s collection, and in terms of the act’s reputation, continues to validate the Dutty Moonshine Big Band as one of the most adventurous acts within the scene, and a genuine force to be reckoned with.

Pre-orders for City of Sin are available here.

Review: Fowl Play - Captain Flatcap

The latest offering from the – still relatively fresh – Swing & Bass label is Captain Flatcap’s Fowl Play, a four-track EP with one of my favourite pieces of cover art I’ve seen in quite some time. As an act, Captain Flatcap tends to be quite fluid, both in terms of genre – fitting loosely into the electro swing category but taking influence from anything and everything – and also the act itself: Captain Flatcap representing anything from a band, DJ, or producer, depending on what is being called for – all centred around the mastermind that is Chris Rotherham.

This most recent EP begins with ‘Fowl Play’, which puts us in high spirits from the very start, opening with a sample from a Too Many T’s interview, whereupon the questions being asked by the child host include that of who would win in a fight between Dutty Moonshine, Danny Wav, and of course, Captain Flatcap. We then have a relaxing, chilled introduction, followed by a slightly minimal drop with some distinctive squelches, and the fun mood continues with the sounds of ducks quacking embedded throughout the track. Overall, the song is nice, downbeat, and a good opener. Following this is ‘Bang Bang Boogie’, in which the trademark flute continues, juxtaposed against some interesting glitchy sounds. We also find an electric guitar here, which is very welcome as the instrument doesn’t tend to be heard too much in this genre. The track is very danceable, but I can’t help feeling that it goes on a bit too long; it could do with either being slightly shorter, or fleshing out and expanding its ideas more. There is a little bit of development towards the end, but unfortunately it seems somewhat too little too late.

Next up is ‘Quacky Baccy’ – extending the duck-based theme of the EP – which starts off charmingly, with a jazzy, almost New Orleans vibe, and introduces a Hendrix-esque guitar as the song progresses. It’s clear that there’s a lot of classic rock influence on this release, if only subtle, but it works wonders. As the song continues, the guitar is interspersed with some filthy wobbles which begin to emerge, and the second build-up towards the end is fantastic – particular the way in which this guitar is utilised alongside the more synthetic sounds. Finally, the EP closes with ‘I Spy’, featuring the Kurnel MC, who has previously worked with Captain Flatcap for the track ‘In My Blood’ on their previous release. As the song begins, the scratches alongside the flamenco guitar during the intro signal an exciting start, and we go on to have some very effective uses of slow and gradual phase sweeps. The Kurnel MC brings some fun and clever lyrical references throughout, which underlies an important message of protest. Towards the end, some more wobbles are introduced, which are a little unexpected at first, and could maybe have been built up slightly better, but once they’re in, they work very well indeed.

As the EP finishes, I feel like I’ve just listened to one of the first significant releases of the year for this genre. One never knows quite what to expect from Captain Flatcap; aside from the unique flute-playing which is found across all of the act’s music, the sound often seems to vary from release to release. I feel that this is the ultimate goal however, and if a wide variety of sounds is the aim, then it has certainly been achieved. I always look forward to seeing Captain Flatcap at any festival in which I get the chance, and with the release of this EP, I am only more excited for the next opportunity.

Reflections on a PhD

For the vast majority of the public, 2016 was a year to largely be forgotten about. In my case however, it was one of the most exciting years of recent times, as this was the year that I began my PhD at the University of South Wales. I first discovered the genre of electro swing in 2012, and over the next few years I gradually and semi-unintentionally decided to go down the path of extensively and comprehensively researching this genre – and by 2016 I had completed both my undergrad BA, and Master’s degree in Musicology, both of which including an extended dissertation into electro swing (which can be read here). At the start of 2016, I was living in Sheffield, and upon receiving a scholarship to begin the PhD, I moved down to Cardiff, and started the project that would occupy the next three and a half years of my life.

December the 17^th marked the final stage of this journey, graduating and finally getting the title of Dr Inglis. I’m very glad that I managed to complete everything by the end of 2019, as it was a fantastic way to round off the year. And now, whilst I have a bit of time over the Christmas holidays, I figured it might be appropriate to compose a reflection on the whole experience, and simultaneously offer advice to anyone else that might be pursuing a PhD in the future.

Research a topic that you love

One of the best advantages to any PhD is that you’re effectively going to become the leading expert in whatever the subject area it is that you’re researching. On top of this, you’re going to be putting a hell of a lot of time and energy into this work, so you’d better make sure that it’s not something that’s going to drive you crazy when spending the vast majority of your hours dealing with the topic. By researching something that you’re truly passionate about, you’re less likely to get bored of it, and you’ll be especially proud of the final result. I was lucky enough that there’s yet to be any serious literature into the electro swing style, so the niche was mine to fill. On top of this, it’s a genre that I genuinely really enjoy, thus the joy of making new discoveries about it was fulfilling in both an academic and personal sense.

Seek funding

It’s a sad reality that higher education is an expensive business. It’s particularly difficult for postgraduate students, who don’t even have the opportunity to get a student loan. Thus, the only way to realistically pursue a PhD without spending a fortune is to acquire funding. There are several ways to do this: one is to get a sponsorship; this is more common in the sciences, however the disadvantage is that you’re not as free with your research, as you essentially have to do the bidding of your sponsor. Another way is to get funding from external doctoral training partnerships; there are several of these around, and it’s definitely worth pursuing. I was lucky enough to receive an internal scholarship from the University itself. This was probably the most advantageous course of action; by demonstrating that my research was worthy of extended research, I was free to guide my own research in precisely the ways I wanted from start to finish.

Find the right supervision team

Whilst there are real benefits to guiding your own research, it’s also vitally important to recognise the expertise of those with much more experience than you. Yes, you’re the one with the most knowledge in this particular area, but in terms of how to apply that knowledge, and create the actual thesis – it’s important to recognise that the real talent lies with those who’ll be guiding you through the writing process. I would say that when first deciding where to conduct your research, the most important question should be “who will be doing the supervision?”. I personally was advised by one supervisor who already had a prior interest in electro swing, and another who was heavily involved in the acid jazz scene of the ’90s – and resultingly, the final work would be of considerably less worth were it not for the continued advice of this team.

Don’t isolate yourself

Despite having this team, the overwhelming majority of work you’ll do will be completely on your own. Personally, I think I had a meeting approximately once every three or so weeks, so there’ll be a lot of time spent working by yourself. I know that some people prefer to work like this, but personally, I know that I’d go insane to not have regular company for so long. Over my time doing this work then, I made sure to surround myself with others conducting research into various other areas; not only did this help me with avoiding isolation, but I also learnt a great amount about things that I otherwise never would. One should never pass up on the opportunity to discuss their work, and I can point to multiple occasions when a simple conversation with a peer helped me solve a problem, or develop new ideas.

Treat it like a job

This one mainly applies for those undertaking a PhD full-time, although I suppose that it might be relevant even for those doing their research alongside additional work. Writing a doctoral thesis is an enormous task, and it’s hard to appreciate just how much work it really is until you’ve done one. To ensure that the task actually gets completed requires a great deal of self-discipline, and it will be necessary for you to maintain a regular routine, working just as many hours as you would in any other profession. Of course, on the other hand, you need to know when to stop: overworking yourself can be just as much of a problem, and I for example was sure to never work weekends, or past 5PM unless necessary.

Take advantage of every opportunity to share your research

One of the things I enjoyed most about my entire PhD experience was getting to travel around and present my research as it progressed, across several different symposiums and conferences. Not only does this give you an opportunity to develop your work in terms of its presentation, but it’s also a fantastic confidence boost to know that other authors that may well have inspired your own research are finding your work genuinely fascinating. I personally had the chance to present in Amsterdam, Lisbon, as well as at the University of Cambridge – amongst others – and was also fortunate enough to share panels with some of the researchers who I’ve looked up to for quite some time now. Undoubtedly this felt brilliant, and through this you will also begin to feel like you’re part of a distinctive community. I know that I still intend to keep attending conferences and presenting for as long as I’m involved in this particular area.

Teach if you can

Another opportunity that a lot of doctoral researchers will get is to teach some of the undergraduates in whatever institution you’re working in. In my third year in particular I was given the chance to teach the university’s second-year Musicology module, and I absolutely loved it. Not only does the transfer of knowledge feel fantastic, but it will give you the opportunity to flesh out your own ideas as well. Depending on what particular subject was being taught that day, I would often weave examples from my own work into the lectures, and there were numerous moments when a student’s thoughts or suggestions made me rethink or reconsider my opinions in ways that ended up benefitting the final work.

Enjoy it

Finally, the most important thing is to enjoy yourself. As cliché as this advice sounds, the whole experience should be incredible, and it will be, provided you allow it to be. Yes, it will be stressful at times, and you will get frustrated, but that should be balanced out by the fun of the whole thing, and it certainly was in my case. As I’ve mentioned, I was researching an area that I was – and still am – incredibly passionate about, and conducting this research allowed me to experience a great deal of things that I would have jumped at the chance to do anyway. Interviewing many of my favourite musicians; becoming a part of what felt like electro swing’s ‘inner circle’; going to dozens of festivals, club nights, and concerts: these were all things that I’ve hugely enjoyed, and would have loved to experience, regardless of the status of my work. One of my favourites moments of the past year was travelling over to Chicago for Roaring City, America’s first ever electro swing festival – something I simply wouldn’t have done were it not for the benefit of my research. The opportunities I’ve had since starting this PhD have been wonderful, and I’m so glad that I managed to make this entire thing happen.

I hope that my words may help someone considering postgraduate education to make the right decisions. I love electro swing, and I fully intend to keep up this work; that’s the main reason why I started this blog. As we approach the end of the year, I’m looking forward to what’s coming for the genre in 2020, and even more so, I’m looking forward to the next stages of my own academic electro swing career.

Review: The Next Big Swing - Tuxedo Junction

Yesterday’s date will undoubtedly be remembered as one of the most miserable in recent British history, but as an eternal optimist I’m intent on seeing the positives from day to day, and it just so happened that the 12^th of December was also the release date of Tuxedo Junction’s latest EP, The Next Big Swing. This duo are showing real power in the scene right now, and presenting themselves as a force to be reckoned with, both live and on record. This EP represents their second release on Ragtime Records, after last year’s Swing, Shaken Not Stirred, and throughout, they continue to demonstrate their ability to impress.

The EP opens with ‘Mr. Business’, dropping you straight in with an upbeat rhythm over a brilliant walking bassline, which continues to build up to an archetypal Tuxedo Junction breakdown. I can already hear this being dropped at events like the Church of Love, and it’s sure to absolutely kill on the dancefloor. The track keeps on developing different ideas – including a nice gypsy jazz section – and despite the use of a relatively short sample throughout, manages to maintain interest through various different explorations. Next up is ‘Mr. Burgundy’ – which brings a bossa nova flavour, alongside some flute samples reminiscent of Captain Flatcap’s playing on ‘Past Last Orders’ on their last release. Whilst I did enjoy the track, it’s definitely the weakest of the release; the repetitiveness, along with some strange mixing choices, make it sound a little unfinished overall.

Luckily we’re brought back up to the high standards with ‘Mr. Dick Sluts’, a song with a name to remind you of the silliness of the act. This track’s real strength lies in its basslines: it features some utterly filthy wobbles from start to finish, alongside some really jazzy walking bass, and also featuring the funkiest basslines cutting through throughout. Unexpectedly, I found myself slightly reminded of Caravan Palace’s latest release when listening to this one; whilst the song is very different stylistically, some of the rapid edits do seem rather similar to those found on Chronologic. Finally, the EP ends with ‘Mr. Brosnan’, a collaborative effort produced with Waggles and Hiphoppapotamus, who provide the samba fused with drum ’n’ bass rhythms. This song has a strong Latin groove to it, and whilst quite repetitive, it’s done so in an almost minimalistic manner, which is exactly what I feel they were going for – and it works. The slow build-up over the course of the song results in a practically atmospheric feel, which is a nice way to finish – making the release feel like a full experience.

Tuxedo Junction are capable of creating some absolute bangers. One of their first tracks – ‘Cufflinks & Caviar’ – remains one of my favourite tracks of the whole genre, and the recent release of their Ricky Martin bootleg has been anticipated like hardly anything I’ve seen before. They also manage to create some of the most enjoyable live mixes on a routine bases – see their recent Shambala mix for evidence of this. This EP is a fine addition to their catalogue. It’s not the best thing they’ve ever put out, and it doesn’t showcase them to the best of their ability, but it still places them in a very high ranking amongst their peers. If one needs cheering up on a day like today, they could do no better than a listen to this.

Review: Speakin' Easy - The Swinghoppers

Just in time for Christmas, everyone’s favourite semi-comedic electro swing hip hop trio have given us their second EP in almost as many years: the Swinghopper’s Speakin’ Easy. Made up of Offbeat, Sharleena Ray, and Pye – all artists in their own right as well – the Swinghoppers are still a relatively new act in the electro swing world, but one would be forgiven for forgetting this – as they’ve very quickly risen to become one of the most recognisable acts on the UK circuit. Their first EP utilised a number of well-known songs from both the swing and hip hop world, which the band put their on unique spin on, and this release takes very much the same approach.

We begin with ‘Swing Swing Swing’. Now whilst those more invested in this genre may roll their eyes and yet another adaptation of this classic, it’s fair to say that the Swinghoppers have still managed to put commendable effort into their version. Pye’s rapping is noticeably improved since the first EP here, and we find many lyrics featuring the band’s signature tongue-in-cheek swagger. One lyric I was particularly intrigued by was Offbeat’s line: “old-school fans of jazz just can’t stand us”; I can’t tell is he is wishing that this weren’t the case, or proudly proclaiming his level of innovation. This type of self-referential material continues into ‘Swinguistics’, a slightly more downbeat track with more extended rapping from Pye – although I do note that we’re yet to hear any beatboxing.

‘Big Spender’ features some exceptionally strong vocals from Sharleena Ray, channeling her inner Shirley Bassey, and the rapping game is impressive here too, with some seriously driving flow coming from both Offbeat and Pye. This second half of the EP is easily the better half, and I’d be tempted to say that this might be the best of the four tracks – though it’s a very very close call between this and the EP’s finisher, ‘S Gon’ Give It To Ya’. This ending track is huge, and features great rapping from all three – with even Sharleena getting in on the action – really showcasing the talents of the group. The production is solid, and the band never fails to demonstrate their ability for humour within the lyrics – who else would ever write rhymes about the correct way to pronounce espresso?

This EP is very much what a fan would expect from the Swinghoppers. Yes, the lyrics may be a little on the nose and even cheesy at times, but the band are very self-aware, and it’s all done in quite the humourous way. Offbeat remains his usual likable self, and there is no doubt whatsoever that Pye’s rapping has greatly improved on this release. One downside is that I would have liked to have heard some more beatboxing – for a performer as incredibly talented as he is, it’s a shame for him to not showcase this to its greatest potential. Overall, Speakin’ Easy is simply a very enjoyable record. The Swinghoppers are never going to be one of the most phenomenal acts in terms of musicality, but they are definitely one of the most fun.

The Roots of Electro Swing

As with any genre, it’s difficult to pinpoint the exact moment electro swing could be said to have first begun. Genres are constantly evolving and adapting to their respective environments, and it’s often only with hindsight that one may realise the importance certain songs or events may have had on a subsequent genre’s emergence. The roots of electro swing stretch far far back, and determining the genre’s development is not an objective matter. However, we may look at the music that preceded it retrospectively, and begin to develop some sort of timeline that can be said to have foreshadowed the genre’s arrival.

I’ve chosen to put the most recent end of the timeline at 2004, for this year saw the release of both Parov Stelar’s Rough Cuts, and Nicolas Repac’s Swing-Swing. By this year, electro swing had well and truly surfaced. Determining the other end of this timeline is a bit more tricky however. We could obviously look at the lineage of jazz, going back to the late 18^th-century, but I’m more interested in looking at the first merging of jazz and dance music; of vintage and remix; of swing and electro.

1917

One might say then, that the first example of this was the very first time a jazz track was put to recording. In this instance then, we have a very clear answer to the question, for the first jazz recording is very well documented, that being the Original Dixieland Jass Band’s ‘Livery Stable Blues’.

1926

Another early development that one must take note of is the type of vocal stylings that would later provide a basis for hip hop, and most notably, jazz rap. It’s long been argued that this type of vocal delivery emerged out of scat singing, and whilst it’s difficult to determine the very first instance of this, what’s often cited as the first example is Louis Armstrong’s ‘Heebie Jeebies’.

1937

Scat singing was used extensively through jazz and its related styles, and if one digs hard enough, it’s possible to find examples of early tunes sounding considerably similar to what would later develop into rap. The finest example I’ve come across is in the gospel music of the Golden Gate Quartet.

Now, whilst the use of the studio can certainly be described as electronic innovation in jazz, all of the examples featured so far have only featured acoustic instruments. This would change in this same year however, whereupon we can find the first example of true electronic instrumentation on a jazz record: George Barnes’ electric guitarwork on Big Bill Broonzy’s ‘Sweetheart Land’.

1939

Whilst Barnes’ work was certainly revolutionary, he never managed to achieve the popularity that he perhaps deserved. That acclaim would largely be directed towards Charlie Christian, who – joining the Benny Goodman Orchestra in this year – would become one of the most notable and influential guitarists of all time.

1969

To an extent, these types of developments opened the floodgates to all sorts of electrical innovation in jazz, and as the style would progress, many more artists began incorporating electronic instrumentation into their music. The most notable of these was arguably Miles Davis, who between 1968 and 1975 was even referred to as having an ‘electric period’, marked by albums such as In a Silent Way, and Bitches Brew.

1970

Similarly, the proto-hip hop sounds would continue to develop, often directly alongside the music of jazz. The most notable of these artists around this period was Gil Scott Heron, who has at times been considered the world’s first rapper.

1975

Jazz also started to become intertwined with the early development of electronic dance music around this time, and one of the first records to showcase this was Lonnie Liston Smith’s ‘Expansions’.

1983

Inspired by music such as this, one of the earliest musicians to extensively fuse jazz with the emerging electro sound was Herbie Hancock. This year, Hancock released Future Shock, an album unlike anything he’d produced before. Most notably for the single ‘Rockit’, from this album onwards, Hancock would begin to focus just as much energy onto the electro sound as he had previously done with jazz.

1985

By this time, the world had fully embraced the hip hop style, and musicians would begin to see how they might be able to fuse this music with various others. Although something of a gimmick, the first track to do this with jazz was the appropriately named ‘Jazz Rap’ by Cargo, the group centred around British musician Mike Carr.

1986

This year would see the development of the new jack swing sound, pioneered by producer Teddy Riley, which fused the sounds of swing with the contemporary R&B sound. Developing the sound alongside his own act Blackstreet, what is generally considered the first new jack swing release was Janet Jackson’s Control.

1988

1988 would then see the release of what’s widely considered the first genuine jazz rap track, a track that would arguably set off the whole of the jazz rap scene that developed out of New York around this time, Stetsasonic’s ‘Talkin’ All That Jazz’.

The NY jazz rap scene culminated in the creation of Native Tongues, a crew of various artists creating this type of music, and all regularly collaborating with one another, including the Jungle Brothers, A Tribe Called Quest, De La Soul, Queen Latifah, and Monie Love.

This year also saw the emergence of acid jazz in Britain, combining the sounds of acid house with contemporary jazz. Developed by DJs such as Gilles Peterson and Chris Bangs, the Acid Jazz label put out its first compilation in 1988, entitled Totally Wired.

1989

The various movements around this time can all retrospectively be seen to signal the introduction of a style like electro swing, and what is occasionally cited as the first electro swing track would emerge this year, Jive Bunny and the Mastermixers ‘Swing the Mood’, based around Glenn Miller’s ‘In the Mood’, and sampling many early rock ’n’ roll tracks as well. Like Cargo’s ‘Jazz Rap’, this release was certainly something of a gimmick, but it’s essential to highlight when considering the development of the electro swing style.

1991

Alongside the acid jazz scene, Britain would also see the development of trip hop, a more laidback style fusing the sounds of hip hop and jazz, featuring extensive sampling. Largely emerging out of Bristol, the pioneers of trip hop are generally considered to be Massive Attack, Tricky, and Portishead.

Back in America, the ’90s would also see the development of the neo-swing genre, pioneered by California’s Royal Crown Revue. Fusing swing with a more contemporary rock sound, this genre would have considerable influence upon the electro swing style.

1992

1992 brought with it the release of Miles Davis’s final album, Doo-Bop. Unsurprisingly, considering the innovation Davis involved himself with during his ‘electric period’ – and indeed, throughout his entire career – he would continue to create music in unexplored territory, this time working alongside hip hop producer Easy Mo Bee.

Another of the most significant artists of this era for electro swing was Courtney Pine, a jazz saxophonist who would undertake extensive collaboration with artists from genres including hip hop, and drum ’n’ bass. Pine’s sixth album is arguably his most influential in this regard, ‘To The Eyes of Creation’.

1993

One of the acts Pine would occasionally collaborate with was the hip hop duo Gang Starr, and in 1993, Gang Starr’s MC Guru would release Jazzmatazz, which many have argued is the absolute pinnacle of the entire jazz rap scene.

Returning to new jack swing, this year also saw the release of K7’s ‘Hi De Ho’, a track which resembles incredibly closely what we would now undoubtedly refer to as electro swing.

And a similar track in this manner is ‘U Got Me Up’, a house track by Dajaé featuring a significant swing influence, which was released the same year.

1994

So this year is important, as it saw the release of ‘Lucas With the Lid Off’ by Danish rapper Lucas, in which he raps over a sample of Benny Goodman’s ‘When Buddha Smiles’. Considering all of the tracks featured so far throughout this post, there is plenty of opportunity for debate as to what constitutes genuine electro swing and what doesn’t, but in this case there can be no doubt. ‘Lucas With the Lid Off’ is 100% electro swing, and makes a very convincing argument for the first ever electro swing release.

1999

Following on from ‘Lucas With the Lid Off’ we would see a number of similar tracks emerge, but this seemed to really take shape around the turn of the century, when we would find tracks such as Moby’s ‘Honey’…

…Mr Scruff’s ‘Get a Move On’…

2000

…and the following year, Jurassic 5’s ‘Swing Set’.

2001

The penultimate year I will discuss is 2001, during which ‘Shadow Kingdom’ was released, by the obscure Austrian artist Plasma. More in line with acid jazz than the new electro swing sound, this album was notable for being the first release by Marcus Füreder, who would later become Parov Stelar.

2004

And by this point, electro swing had undoubtedly emerged. I mentioned at the beginning that this year’s releases by Parov Stelar and Nicolas Repac signalled the first undeniable electro swing albums; interestingly enough a decade after the first undeniable electro swing single.

Since this, it’s quite easy to track the development of electro swing. The following years would see the beginnings of Caravan Palace, C2C, Caro Emerald, Chinese Man, the Correspondents and a whole host of other acts who any enthusiast will presumably be familiar with. These preceding developments did not occur with any kind of predetermined purpose of creating electro swing, but in many of their cases it’s easy to see how significant their impact upon the scene has been. I certainly hope that this little history lesson has been educational, and has demonstrated – if nothing else – how complex the roots of a music scene can be. Indeed, particularly for electro swing – which owes so much to its predecessors – an awareness of how the genre came to be will perhaps make the experience of listening to the music even more enjoyable.

Review: Chronologic - Caravan Palace

Caravan Palace. Quite possibly the most respected act in electro swing – in fact quite likely. You’d be hard-pressed to find any other artist in the genre who doesn’t cite them as an influence of some kind. These guys have been making music for over a decade now, and have consistently set the bar for others to try and reach. Chronologic represents their fourth album now, and it’s one which has been both highly-anticipated, and greatly-received. In fact, as the band announced on their Twitter last Saturday, the album was amongst the top ten bestselling albums worldwide. Quite a feat for an electro swing act, and one which may take us some time to see repeated.

The album is certainly something of a departure from what many of us were expecting from the band. It’s understandable that, having been in the game for such a time now, they would want to expand their sound, and actually something that I’d argue most acts should attempt more. Of course, making significant changes to one’s sound carries risks with it, and whether this has paid off or not for Caravan Palace is a different matter.

The album opens with ‘Miracle’. Now, this track has been available for some time now, and so I was already very familiar with it. I recall back in February, upon it’s release, saying how different it sounded, and that I probably wouldn’t recognise it as them had I not already known. This definitely set us up for what was to come, and gave us time to prepare ourselves. It’s a brilliant start though, very bluesy, very positive and energetic, and some great use of samples throughout. Following this is ‘About You’ – another which had already been released earlier in the year. This features a bit more of a familiar CP sound, particularly in the high-pitched group vocals that come in towards the end. The track features Charles X, who I’m only familiar with because of Smokey Joe and the Kid’s ‘Smokid All Stars’ (an absolute tour de force), however I was a little disappointed with his vocals, which aren’t all that interesting as a whole. The massive bass hook that follows his lines certainly makes up for it though. Next, the first track that I didn’t already know was ‘Moonshine’, which is very reminiscent of ‘Russian’ off their last album. Again, it’s a return for the familiar CP sound, and we have the trademark high vocals again. There’s a very interesting contrast here between the cheery, upbeat music, and the slow, wistful, solo voice.

The next track is ‘Melancholia’, which unfortunately, does not hit the mark at all. It’s as if the worst parts of ‘About You’ have been extended into a whole song; for the most part, the baritone sax is the only saviour. Towards the end, I can appreciate the piano solo as well, but overall, this one I was not so keen on. Thankfully, the next song is ‘Plume’, which brings us back to the highs we know Caravan Palace are capable of achieving. The song is great, and represents everything I was hoping the album would be. It was definitely the right choice to release this as a single as well, and I’m glad they did. ‘Fargo’ follows, which is a nice little interlude with a New Orleans feel, before transitioning and ending on an almost cinematic note, before we find ‘Waterguns’, the second collaboration of the album. Again however, the vocals are not particularly impressive. Songs like this one really highlight the decision by the band to pursue a more pop-based sound, and it was a bad decision. Throughout the song, I couldn’t help thinking how much better it would sound with Zoé’s distinctive vocals. The instrumentation is good though, very much in line with the band’s sound.

‘Leena’ is probably the most interesting of all the songs on the release. Structurally, there’s definitely an escape from the standard pop formula, and we find that great use of samples like on ‘Miracle’ again. The sharp cutting throughout strongly reminds me of C2C, and I can’t help but wonder if Mighty Mezz’s work with DJ Greem in Alligatorz has played a strong role in influencing this album on the whole. Particularly on this track, each individual sample seems to smack you in the face. The next track is ‘Supersonics’, which might be my favourite – it’s definitely the best non-single. It’s really bluesy again, really upbeat, and just a great singalong. I love the group vocals in the chorus; this definitely has the potential to be stuck in one’s head for days. Another little interlude, like ‘Fargo’, follows with ‘Ghosts’. It’s interesting that they’ve included these almost mood-setting tracks, as if they’re setting us up for what’s to follow. Indeed, the transition is needed, as the final track ‘April’, is considerably different from ‘Supersonics’. A lot more downtempo, this is probably the most ‘vintage’ sounding track for the most part. You can tell it’s a finale song from the very beginning, with the bursting chords that start the piece. We have the C2C-esque sampling again, and the build-up towards the end is absolutely superb – I can tell this will be fantastic live – before we’re left with a minimal, lone vocal to close.

So overall I’m a little torn about this release. It’s certainly a departure from their established sound, and whilst I encourage this, I’m not sure it’s completely worked in their favour in this case. It’s a lot more downtempo, and significant sections of it don’t feel very dancey. The decision to move closer to the standard pop model in parts is one I wish they hadn’t taken, and there are certainly improvements that could be made. However, it is a good listen, and I really enjoyed the way in which they used sampling throughout. So it’s not their best album. But, from time to time, there are little scraps of genius.