LISTENING TO - Playing Robots Into Heaven by James Blake

Playing Robots Into Heaven is James Blake's sixth solo album. He tenaciously continues to explore a totally unique electronic style, both as a songwriter, composer and producer. Because his work is composed and ever so carefully constructed, it lulls you into a comforting sense of security, of thinking you know where you are. Then the beauty within it, suddenly erupts taking you completely by surprise.

Blake has achieved a reach and influence way beyond his top chart appearances, which are admittedly few. Whilst you could very easily accuse him of becoming his own cliche, he has also a remarkable facility for constant reinvention of his own musical form. Many pieces here start from such an unpromising points of departure, but sort of say 'bear with me' as they then develop a multi layered complexity and depth as they progress.

 

I've not fallen in love with absolutely everything he has released. There are, however, at least one or two tracks per album that have something fresh to communicate. If not on a musical level, then in his capacity to tap quite deeply into these veins of emotion. Because of this, I've never fully given up on him, or his music.

There was a time around his third album The Colour In Anything, where he gave the impression he could not edit or quality check his output anymore. It felt like he released everything. With seventeen sprawling tracks and a 76 plus minutes running time, I've never made it through the whole of The Colour in Anything. I tend to find myself desiring to pull the plug halfway. Which is not to say it hadn't stunning tracks on it liked, but there is a limit to how much gently voiced wallowing any person with better things to do, people to see, can safely digest.

This latest album Playing Robots Into Heaven marks a seemingly abrupt departure, a minor revolution in his approach. Perhaps its more of a rediscovery of rhythmic experimentation that propels the collisions of elements and themes. What distinguishes it is the bravery with which he is prepared to step beyond his comfort zone into the sonic unknown. You might find the results here a bit scatter gun at times, or wildly unfocused. I would say it greatly benefits from its adventurousness and a willingness not to reach for a convention or cliche in an attempt to resolve the dis-junctions he creates. He leaves them, at times, totally raw edged and unresolved if need be.

There are moments on a number of tracks where the sound of it literally seems to be breaking up, or veers off into atonality, dissolution or cacophony. The quality of Blake's voice is rarely given sufficient praise. It has a beautiful soulful cadence and melancholic turn of phrase. Here all sorts of treatments are applied to it to give it a wider tonal range - its altered in pitch, auto tuned, muffled, buried, echoed, double tracked, stretched and dragged out.

An immediate piece to highlight is Loading. Opening with a churchy organ. This track utilises a simple descending refrain -  Wherever I go, I'm only as good as my mind, which is only good if you're mine - conjuring up a feeling of transcendent wonder.- Where are my wings? They're loading. Then ending with a catastrophic descending wail of discordant synthetic, as though its the Icarus of love falling from the sky. Utterly brilliant stuff.

Tell Me has a madness, a hyped up druggy rush to it, driven forward by a bleepy game console type musical refrain. Those of you accustomed to Blake's more languid ballardry will have to reaccustom yourself to this inventive mastery of orchestrated rhythm. It flows on with seemless ingenuity from one track to the next.

 

Then comes He's Been Wonderful. Over a stridently repeated One, Two, Three, a soulful voice sings - He's really been, really, really been. An electro gospel vibe permeating through out. Big Hammer follows with its atonal rap over what sounds like an auto generated twitter of a game loop.

 

I Want You To Know, is an unusually crafted love song where a classic Blake vocal line clashes with a tumbling beat pattern and a delightfully oscillating backing vocal. It's almost as if he's wondered - what if I put this with this, what will come out of it? The album then let's you down gently with a final flourish of ambient like or mood orientated tracks.

This is far and away James Blakes most interesting release for many a year. Stretching the envelope of what he is capable of, without losing hold of his strengths as a songwriter/composer. It attempts -A lot. Goes all over the place, whilst remaining completely part of a cohesive creatively nuanced whole.

CARROT REVIEW  - 7/8