Memory keeper. Mostly music and movies, plus some series and video games. Obscure darkness meets pop culture glow.
Soulful hiphop, lounging r&b, quality chill-out electronics. It’s such an understated and elegant album, so good to listen to. Perfect soundtrack to a day when I’m just going about my things and want something to keep me smoothly sailing along.
This has quickly become one of the soundtracks of this year, and by yet another fantastic female artist; this is a women’s year, no question about that.
I don’t often post about jazz records because I rarely listen to new jazz music, which is not nu jazz. This one is soulful funk and jazz, and it was a surprisingly amazing listen; set my mood beautifully to positivity on an otherwise cloudy afternoon. I specifically mention the deluxe edition because of its second record with some extra nice stuff, remixes and some nu jazz sounds over there.
Last time I actively followed Tosca was at the time of No Hassle in 2009, feels like another life. (Indeed, it was another life.) In 2021, when Kruder & Dorfmeister released 1995 and dZihan & Kamien put out IV I noted that it feels like there’s a bit of nu jazz downtempo lounge comeback in the air. This record came with that same bunch but flew under the radar for me then. In hindsight, I don’t feel that comeback in a trending way after all, but these new records take me back and it’s a nice kind of reminiscing. Smooth as silk.
Nu jazz grooves, from liquid drum and bass vibes to abstract jazzy arrangements.
Another record showcasing the comeback of nu jazz. Smooth and easy.
Nice to mention this record right after Tides as this is a great example for the same vibe but with originality that I felt lacking there. Nice atmospheres on the slow-to-mid tempo electronic axis with lots of live-sounding orchestration, even more Floex vibes, but the more complex drum patterns and the post-dubstep bassline aesthetics package it into something fresh and exciting. I really like that this is a moody record without the sadness aspect—it’s like watching rain through the window but with inspiration and wondering. Actually it’s also like a new take on nu jazz.
Nu jazz sound, chilled, relaxing, smooth. Shape The Future was a huge Nightmares on Wax come-back in my life. This one is not as strong but a fair follow-up.
I had a hard time decoding this record with its extremes ranging from experimental IDM to cool blue jazz. Just thinking about the aspect of this being some weirdly unique and altered jazz sound, gave me associations of The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble or even Brandt Brauer Frick. But this was something different still. And then I read this was a duo of Bernd Friedmann and Uwe Schmidt (Atom™) and it all clicked into place. It’s amazing how two artists can blend into one music in a way that you can see who brought what to the table so clearly.
In full honesty though, my favorite track here is Sweet Silence, which has no electrnics to it, but the film noir atmosphere is just irresistible.
After Kruder & Dorfmeister’s new release here’s a new album by dZihan & Kamien. Alright, so what’s going on? Is nu jazz making a comeback or what? In any case this is a totally fine album, as good as any Couch Records release from back in the day. I’ll be instered to see whether this series continues or even someone tries something new with the future jazz angle. Maybe even Jazzanova produces something new AND worth listening to?
Exactly what it says on the cover: the best downtempo, nu jazz, chill out sound from the golden days of the genre. Supposedly these are some old recordings found and dusted from the G-Stone studio. Sounds like time travel, smooth as ever.