Overgrown

So James Blake's new album "Overgrown" came out today and I've been really looking forward to it. Not to go immediately into the fact that he's just a straight up seductive musician (and he totally plays into that in this album), but I saw the release of this album as an highly-anticipated second date with someone who you're super in to.

Last night I got an email from the itunes store saying the album was ready for download and I dropped everything I was doing. I got ready for bed, got out my good headphones and lied in bed to listen through. It was late and I thought I might fall asleep but I was fully aware of every subtle sound and phrase from the beginning to end. 

Yeah, part of it was the time of night, and the glass of wine I had, and my particular mood but it's also that he writes music that demands attention to detail. And I think that's awesome in an electronic artist (and any artist), because most of them who have tried that in the past failed completely by overcomplicating their work, resulting in a pretty apathetic audience. Blake captivates the listener by using space creatively, and producing textures like you've never heard.

I was going to go into more detail about my favorites, but they're almost all great, though "To the Last" should win a Grammy for best slow dance song in history. Check out this youtube video that previews each track. It will make you reaaaaallly wan to buy the album, if you're into this kind of music:

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