Jamie xx : In Waves
The erstwhile Jamie Smith quietly propelled his friends Romy Madley Croft and Oliver Sim to fame as beatmaker for London band The xx, and then he did it not so quietly as their folksiness fell away in favor of glitches mixed with intent (and remixed beyond that). The trio stepped away from each other cordially following their third album I See You, and after collaborating with Gil-Scott Heron near the end of his life, Jamie xx threw down a set of manic clubland grooves on In Colour in 2015. Nine years later, In Waves reminds us—and Jamie xx himself—of the softer sounds that brought him to the dance before he found his way to the dancefloor.
What In Waves sacrifices in terms of Jamie xx’s percolating takes on techno, it replaces with clear evidence of his growth as a proper songwriter and arranger. This transition is suggested from opening track “Wanna,” with his trademark cut-up vocals and a symbolic dancehall siren pushed back a million miles deep in the mix. There’s certainly more of these party sounds to hear in short order, but whether interpolating existing compositions or giving musicians space to deliver their own lyrics, In Waves centers balladry and poetry on almost every song. We started hearing this on singles like “Kill Dem” and “Let’s Do It Again” released in the years leading up to this album. None of these appear on the new LP itself, but they don’t really need to.
Words of love and celebration help Jamie xx create a hyperpop album that’s playfully constructed, yet able to be serious and even sinister. “Life,” a collaboration with Robyn, flirts through its lyrics (“You’re giving me/First kiss/You’re giving me/Walk of shame/You’re giving me/Strong torso”) and its Latin-tinged drops. He wholly reunites The xx for “Waited All Night,” another in their lexicon of ballads from two partners’ simultaneous POVs. And the six-minute “Breather” delivers three separate feelings: foreboding arcade-race music waiting to be played in half-time for EDM, an intelligent techno prayer, and swirling house.
Samples often straddle that line between instrument and vocal, and Jamie xx has shown a deft touch with them since twisting old junglist tapes for “Gosh” and cutting up Hall & Oates for “On Hold.” It’s becoming a signature sound somewhere between tech-house and two-step, and In Waves shows that off in songs like “Treat Each Other Right” and “Baddy on the Floor.” But elsewhere this flourishes into monologue, dialogue, and spoken word art. He knits together an A$AP Rocky interview, an Astrud Gilberto performance, and guests like Panda Bear in the fabric of “Dafodil.” And the end of the album includes supple, chirping reinterpretations of the words of poet Nikki Giovanni (“All You Children”) and astronomer Carl Sagan (“Falling Together”).
Pop music has always relied on words in addition to musical noises. It’s possible to make pop and variations on it using the latter and not the former, but the converse is much harder. Don’t forget your roots, they say, and on In Waves it seems Jamie xx took that advice to heart.
Label: Young
Year: 2024
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Jamie xx : In Waves
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