Chilled Retro Pop
Manchester singer and electronic innovator Jim Noir follows up his debut album, 'Tower Of Love' with the bright beats and shiny tones of 'Jim Noir', an album that is bursting with juicy pop tunes and zany samples.
There's a distinctly retro theme with the heavenly harmonic intro 'Welcome Commander Jameson' which is shot through with 60's love, Commander J appears later on, 'Welcome CJ' another trippy slice of pop that feels more than a little Bowie-esque in its subject matter and heavenly vocals. The heavily echo-laden vocals in tunes like, 'Don't You Worry' continue this laidback vibe with shimmering sounds and gentle guitar melodies embellishing the cheery melody while, 'Same Place Holiday' could be taken straight from any classic surf rock album with its sugary vocal line and echoing guitarwork. It's an epic playful pastiche, packing its 3 and a half minutes with frothy fun.
'All Right' sounds like the perfect chillout anthem with layers of blissful synths and pulsing percussion washing over each other while 'Happy Day Today' begins as a twee keyboard and falsetto number and blossoms into a mildly angst ridden but euphoric chorus that mixes bittersweet emotions as easily as drinks.
There's wonky pop in the form of 'Good Old Vinyl' with its jaunty lyrics, "Broken, I've broken all my favourite CDs and soon I will be able to get them no more" and quirky keyboard tune which sounds somewhat haphazard but soon transforms into a beautiful vocal harmony.
Jim Noir's eponymous album is a fine mix of playful pop songs with a trippy edge that will charm and delight the listener and serve as a relaxing listen whatever the circumstances, you may find your attention drifting a little at points, but who's to say that isn't the intended outcome?