Album Review: Adult Jazz - 'So Sorry So Slow'
London quartet Adult Jazz release their first full-length record in a decade. ‘So Sorry So Slow’ is a body of work which is not to be missed.
The group’s last full-length album came in the form of the epic ‘Gist Is’. Since then, fans of Adult Jazz have longed for another body of material like it. Vocalist Harry Burgess spoke on the lengthy gap in releases, saying: “We started writing [the new record] in 2017 and began recording in 2018. We genuinely thought it might be finished in 2018! But things kept developing, and, having resolutely not struck while the iron was hot, there was no real external push to rush things after that, so we just kept letting things shift and unfold until it felt right.”
Burgess went on to express that voice notes from 2017 right up until last year provided crucial fragments of ideas which have shaped the new record.
The beauty of ‘So Sorry So Slow’ is that it is triumphantly unique. Its relaxed origins have made for effortlessly free-flowing sounds which are truly eclectic.
The record’s opening quarter is a musical rollercoaster. The initial track, ‘Bleat Melisma’, is driven by a striking drum beat which will immediately capture attention. Burgess makes his entrance with a gripping vocal performance. His voice is shown off in the opener as being truly mesmerising, as he hits high notes with ease.
Following the opener is ‘Suffer One’ which is somewhat different to the prior number. This one is gentler in sound, with harmonic guitar sounds and bass taking centre stage, with strings adding real emphasis.
The record feels more significant than just your average album. It feels to be a fluid musical piece. This is evidenced by the beautiful transitions throughout. From ‘Suffer One’, the album flows into ‘y-rod’. This one is unmissable.
The track is experimental, with a robotic effect on the vocals. It’s also undeniably emotive. Strings drum up an array of feelings throughout. It’s a carefully crafted number… and it’s beautiful. A moment of real salience in the track comes as two violins play harmoniously with one another to create an epic sound. ‘y-rod’ is atmospherically beautiful: a track which will stun listeners.
As previously mentioned, the time-frame of the record’s origin is perhaps what gives it such raw authenticity. The array of sounds and ideas on offer are wowing. There’s a real beauty in the fact that the music on offer has come from such an extended period.
There’s room for everything on ‘So Sorry So Slow’. One track which really stands out is ‘Marquee’. This one kicks off with a solitary piano and is swiftly paired with the unforgettable voice of Burgess. Yet again, his versatility is plain to see. He achieves another sound on this one. His vocal flow in the opening verse pairs the rhythm of the piano… before things take a turn as the number progresses. ‘Marquee’ becomes a real head-bopper with funky drums and strings at the forefront. This track is the perfect advert for the rest of the album. It is constricted by nothing. ‘Marquee’ flows smoothly in its own directions and isn’t restricted to one sound… much like the album itself.
Burgess explained that: “the album initially started out to do with performance […] a number of the first songs in their original forms were almost musical theatre piano ballads. I think that was really a device to write about my life as the ‘main character’: regrets about romance, relationships- unsustainable relationships with the self and others. However, once we started writing, the ideas about unsustainable personal relationships, loving unevenly and heartbreak conflated with a more expressly ecological regret.”
This conflation which the band refer to when speaking on the writing of the album feels crucial. It’s made for an eclectic sound which encompasses all of these feelings which inspired the body of work itself. It’s beautiful. ‘So Sorry So Slow’ feels to be a collection of emotions, a display of the driving forces behind what created it.
The tail end of the album is stunning. As the longest song, ‘I Was Surprised’ is also the penultimate track. It, itself, is a journey through a vast array of feelings and is dramatic, captivating and brilliant.
‘So Sorry So Slow’ closes out with ‘Windfarm’. It’s the perfect track to conclude an epic album. Slow in pace, the song is deeply emotive, with its immersive sound. This one will engulf listeners and induce chills with its sound.
‘So Sorry So Slow’ is phenomenal. The fact that the record draws upon ideas from the past 10 years makes it abundantly unique. The album doesn’t represent one moment in time, but instead depicts a range of feelings from a whole storyline. It’s stunning. Fans will be delighted at the sophomore record of Adult Jazz.
Words by Matthew Caslin
