As the rain trickles down above London over the last few days, the whole dynamic of this lockdown has changed a little bit. Before, it was a refreshing sunshine riddled daily walk around the nearby lakes. This experience has been replaced by an ominous stare out the water ridden window pane. It’s hard not to feel a little deflated by this change in temperature and spirit – this simple alteration has led to a natural change in my music listening pattern. I decided to revert down to one of my all time rainy-mood artists this morning, James Blake. I didn’t even realise he had released a new tune last week!
‘You’re Too Precious‘ is his new single and is the typical whimsical James Blake kind of thing – glitchy, gentle and full of reflective sounds. This was exactly the type of soundscape needed on this drab and dreary Wednesday on the outskirts of the virus-filled capital. The high pitched fluttering vocal effects, Blake’s (alt-j) styled vocals and subtle piano work make this a super chilled tune. I’ll be honest, since seeing my inbox filled with new artist submissions, I have barely had a chance to catch up on Blake’s music. The last songs of his to come to my attention were probably around the Limit to Your Love and Retrograde era. I sort of lost touch with all of the artists that used to offer me consolidation and reassurance growing up. Blake’s Lindesfarne II, will forever be one of my all time favourite tracks! It’s layering, unrivaled.
This new one got me back on a mini James Blake midday binge! The man is one of the UK’s finest modern-day musicians. His creative bravery was a pivotal factor in the introduction of those electronic effects often heard on top of vocals nowadays. His use of these effects opened the floodgates for many artists afterwards – the cool thing is, he is still the fecking king.
Check out ‘You’re Too Precious’
Check out last week’s interview with Billy Nomates here.
I caught up with New York’s Ollie Chanin recently too. He is fresh off a collaboration with Eminem. If you still have some reading left in your eyes, check that one here.
Interviews on the way – Callum Pitt / LANKS / Baiyou
About ‘The Sound Sniffer’
The Sound Sniffer is a music blog which is still only a baby – Founded and run by Kevin Coakley in early 2019. He is a music writer and ghostwriter. ‘The Sound Sniffer’ also runs gigs and showcases in London since Oct 2019. The showcases are picked from artists we find in our submissions inbox.
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