In Waves
Jamie Smith’s 2015 debut solo album *In Colour* set the tone for an entire decade of left-of-center electronic music, but his long-awaited follow-up harbors zero pretension when it comes to trend-watching. Nine years later, *In Waves* sets its sights on the dance floor with glorious aplomb, the perfect complement to a string of body-moving singles that the iconic British producer has released in the preceding year and a half. “The collaboration element was helping me push things forward without having to think too much about myself on my own,” Smith tells Apple Music’s Zane Lowe. From there, the rest of *In Waves* came together in quick succession—and, suitably, the record’s rowdy and in-a-crowd feel was largely inspired by the solitude of the lockdown era, as well as dreams of how it would feel to play big tunes for huge audiences again. “I was starting to get excited about the idea of playing shows again,” Smith says. The guest list for this party is overflowing: Along with a practical reunion of his main outfit The xx on the dreamy “Waited All Night,” house music auteur and recent Beyoncé collaborator Honey Dijon lends her distinctive incantations to the squelch of “Baddy on the Floor,” while experimental-leaning vocalists Kelsey Lu and Panda Bear throw in on the soul-streaked and woozy “Dafodil.” But at the center of *In Waves* is a truly assured sense of confidence from Smith, who’s returned here with a set of club-ready cuts that’s truly crowd-pleasing—all without losing the distinctive touch that’s brought him so much deserved acclaim to this point. “One of the most inspiring things is to go out clubbing,” he says. “And I think you can have quite profound thoughts even in an altered state on the dance floor.”
Ten years after his big solo debut, the UK producer goes even bigger for a well-polished record animated by the ecstatic and easy pleasures of the dancefloor.
In Waves a rewarding and frequently electrifying maximalist outing from Jamie xx.
Nine years on, producer Jamie xx rises to the challenge of following up his masterful debut with ‘In Waves’ – read the review
This is a more complex beast than his last album but the DJ still knows how to craft an immaculate tune
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'In Waves', Jamie xx’s long-awaited sophomore album not only lives up to the near-decade-long anticipation but surpasses it, delivering a sublime auditory
Nearly a decade after his debut, Jamie xx returns with a long-awaited sophomore LP that stylishly swells and retreats with danceable beats and moody romanticism.
In Waves by Jamie xx album review by Sam Franzini for Northern Transmissions. The multi-artist's LP drops September 20th via Young Recordings
Filled with guest stars from his xx bandmates to Robyn, this long-gestating second solo album picks up where In Colour left off, and deepens its dancefloor devotion
The star was once known for her empowering, provocative pop. But this disastrous album is derivative, cack-handed and utterly lifeless
James Smith delivers a big-hearted and lively album with big-name guests and a lot of soul
There’s been a lot of early 90s rave aesthetics in popular culture lately, but an awful lot of it has been at the level of signifiers. Fila, Stüssy, Air Max 90s, smiley faces, sirens, rewinds, crowd noises, hop in a Ford Cortina, tribes coming together, dancing at dawn, baggy hoodies for goalposts, isn’t it, wasn’t it, hmm? There’s been a little less discussed, though, about what raving actually felt like, and in particular that it its revolutionary character came from everyone having the same feeling of being on the same drug at the same time.