As Westminster Quarters (you know, the doorbell song) opens Jayda G’s new DJ-Kicks set, I’m taken back to the new Visionist record. While Visionist used the melody to submerge us in a haunted fever dream, Jayda G promises us an uplifting summertime jam filled with sunshine, warm nights, and dance floors filled with sweat and smiles.
This record completely delivers on that promise.
In many ways, this is my favorite kind of dance record: a mix of classic and new tracks that sparkle with celebratory vocals, uplifting horns, and funky basslines. This is the kind of mix that frees your mind for an hour or so. Midway through the mix, the vibe shifts to more straightforward house, but from start to finish, this has the soul, spirit, and sex of all great deep house. (As an old school fan of deep house, I use the term in its old school way.)
My only complaint is the poor transitions between songs. That’s a basic skill and she definitely falls short on this set.
After one listen, I know I’m going to buy this and slide it on my shelf next to Gilles Peterson and Kerri Chandler and the Jay brothers. Based on this set, Jayda G absolutely deserves a spot amongst the greats.
Released May 14, 2021
I didn’t get the same thing out of this. I generally like the energy to ebb and flow more. This album seemed to hold steady at a point that I would describe as “some energy.” I didn’t dislike it, but it lacked the “musical journey” for me. On a positive note, it has inspired me to try to understand the various genres of electronic music. It will probably take me about 70 more youtube videos, but I hope to get there.
If you figure it out, let me know. I still can’t tell the difference between most genres in electronic music. For me, it always comes back to the two basic genres: good and bad.
Well, those are the two most important sub-genres of anything!
I started with this video, but it was only marginally helpful. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4r0MdBQI6U
I do think your point about “some energy” is fair. I wrote this review after one listen and it describes the enthusiasm I felt as I listened to the record for the first time on a sunny spring day. I’ve listened to it a couple of times since (and yes, I did buy a copy) and while I still like it, I’m not sure I can stand by my statement that it stands among the greats of garage. With that said, though, it definitely conjures a mood and that’s a delightful mood that needs to be conjured more frequently.