Daylight Savings

There’s something immensely soothing about the tones and colors of *Daylight Savings*, the second album from Melbourne four-piece Surprise Chef. Founded in 2017 by housemates Lachlan Stuckey and Jethro Curtin, alongside Andrew Congues and Carl Lindeberg, the group began creating smooth, experimental, funky jazz in their Coburg share house ahead of their 2019 debut, *All News Is Good News*, and the method proved so successful, they simply kept going. What began as an homage to late jazz composer David Axelford has since led them down a unique path via instrumental jazz inspired by their leafy suburban surroundings and Australiana. That may not feel evident in the music itself, but the name—a nod to the early-2000s cooking show—and song titles like “Washing Day” and “Dinner Time” give away their affection for those simple, local moments. And though their music is instrumental, that tongue-in-cheek flair can be felt throughout. It feels as though each member of the group is wryly winking through the florid, ’80s-inspired percussion on \"Leave It, Don\'t Take It\" and the jaunty piano stabs on the title track. Somehow, it feels purposeful, nostalgic and comedic all at once, informed by the group’s noted devotion to crate-digging and experimentation. Their vinyl discoveries have inspired them to delve into funk (“Deadlines,” “New Ferrari\"), roots (“The Limp”), and Madlib-style beats tying it all together.

Daylight Savings is the second full-length album by Melbourne's cinematic soul journeymen Surprise Chef. Recorded over a weekend in Surprise Chef's DIY analogue studio (dubbed The College Of Knowledge), Daylight Savings expands on the dramatic 1970s cinematic soul sound established on their acclaimed first album, 2019's All News Is Good News. Created in Spring 2019, just as the jasmine bush in the backyard of the College Of Knowledge was coming to full bloom, Daylight Savings is filled with the optimism and hope that comes with the impending long, warm evenings after a dreary Melbourne winter.