Review: During lockdown, when strutting your stuff on the dancefloor remained a pipe dream, many producers naturally gravitated towards more downtempo sounds during their studio sessions. Jamie Odell AKA Jimpster, who of course first rose to prominence in the late '90s as a producer of laid-back beats and jazzy instrumentals, was one of those producers. The resultant LP, Birdhouse - his seventh in total - is naturally brilliant, with Odell showcasing the quality of his musicianship (and song writing skills) on a range of warming, comforting and undeniably luscious tracks that variously join the dots between trip-hop, neo soul, nu-jazz, ambient and blunted beats. Throw in some superb guest vocals (from both singers and rappers) and you have a near perfect collection of sofa-ready sounds.
Review: Freerange co-founder Jamie 'Jimpster' Odell recently reached a significant musical milestone, namely the passing of 25 years since the release of his first record. To mark the occasions, he's been releasing a series of retrospective compilations. This is the third and, like its predecessors, is packed to the rafters with career highlights. For the most part the set focuses on the more downtempo end of Odell's output, flitting between evocative nu-jazz ('Bad Hair Blues', the ultra-dreamy lusciousness of 'Maiden Voyage'), squelchy electronica ('Makin' Weird'), jazz-funk-fired broken beat ('Standing Wave'), bruk/hip-house fusion (Capitol A collaboration 'Left & Right') and slow-motion soundscapes ('Fluorescent Blue'), with only occasional forays into deep house. In a word: superb!
Review: Thanks to the slowly shifting warmth, gentle breeziness and sun-kissed appeal of the twelve tracks on Coastal Soul Volume 4, we now have a strong desire to kick off our shoes and flop down on the nearest sandy beach. You'll struggle to find a more languid and life-affirming chunk of jazz-funk/deep house/soul fusion than Jimpster's "Closer To You", while Kiss Me Again's gorgeous "Garden Waves" is arguably best enjoyed while sipping something boozy, cold and fruity. Highlights continue to come thick and fast throughout, from the subtly D-Train influenced throb of Jex Opolis's remix of Jules Etienne's "Free As A Man", to the lazy sunset warmth of Andras Fox's hybrid electronic/organic Balearic house take on Ponzu Island's "Super Koto".
Review: Over the course of the last decade, Swiss stalwart Deetron has been responsible for a string of impressive remixes. Happily, these - and many others you may have missed - have now been collected together on the decidedly epic Re-Creation: Remixes Compiled. As you'd expect, the 25-track set flits between full-throttle, peak-time friendly techno futurism, bustling deep house goodness and more downbeat explorations that defy his reputation as a maker of killer club cuts. Highlights include the loved-up synth breakdowns and jacking, Chicago-style groove of his Juan MacLean remix, a wonderfully retro-futurist take on George Fitzgerald's "Every Inch", a thrusting, stab-happy revision of Quarion and a lusciously jazzy take on Todd Terje's "Alfonso Muskedender". That said, on another day we could have listed another five or six highlights: it really is that good.
Review: With its flowering piano motifs, hazy chord progressions, African-influenced percussion, soulful Jinadu vocals and blissful, midtempo deep house vibe, "The Sun Comes Up" is not only one of Jimpster's most evocative releases in years, but also the undoubted highlight of the Freerange co-founder's recent album, Silent Stars. This deserved single release not only contains the peerless original version, but also a pleasingly wide-eyed, early house-meets-modern-deep house "6AM Mix" by Peggy Gou. Elsewhere, there's another airing for the warm and woozy, similarly Afro-influenced "Silent Stars" and a fluid, broken house revision of "Where You Are" by Steve Urulu. Essential stuff, all told.
Review: Having spent much of 2016 focusing on the 20th anniversary of his impressive Freerange label, Jamie "Jimpster" Odell returns with his long-awaited sixth full-length, his first album since 2013's much admired Porchlight & Rocking Chairs. As you might expect, Silent Stars is a musically expansive affair, with the producer's usual floor-friendly deep house workouts being accompanied by tracks that pay homage to starry jazz-funk (brilliant opener "Migrations"), synthesizer-heavy new age ambient (the wonderful "Sylvanshine"), loose and languid Balearica (Jinadau collaboration "The Sun Comes Up"), Floating Points Ensemble style jazz ("Tau Tona"), modern soul ("Everytime") and even a touch of Osunlade style tribal bounce ("Silent Stars"). In other words, it's superb.
Review: Its 20 years of Jamie Odell aka Jimpster's revered deep house imprint and he's celebrating in great style with this 20 track compilation that demonstrates that business is as good as ever and they're testament to how much the label has remained relevant. The label head honcho himself appears of course; first with Luv Jam on the smooth and dubby "We Play Pads" and the sombre and emotive "Ceilings" featuring Laura Barrick. Other highlights include Bulgarian hardware maverick KiNK's "Roads", Detroit Swindle's fiercely bumpin' "Race Against The Machine" and Pittsburgh Track Authority's magnificent high tech soul jam "Oculus Sinister".
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