By definition an automaton is a machine designed to imitate human actions, which led me to expect a detached electronic vibe rather than an album as loose as this. It's been seven years and Jamiroquai are back with new album Automaton proving that they can still sound every bit as innovative and fresh as they did back in their 90s heyday. The album is full of great electronic/disco hooks, cheeky vocoders and driving rhythms creating a 21st century spin on classic sounds.
Overall the album is very out there. There’s a lot of throwback going on although these influences are taken forward – it’s in your face, inspired by the late 70s but less disco revival and more future nightclub. As ever, Jamiroquai are fun to listen to, playful, fresh and exciting while at the same time keeping a smooth sexy sheen throughout.
Automaton opens strongly with ‘Shake It On’ – a punchy, dance-inspired number which sets the bar and tone for the rest of the album. There’s lots of classic disco referencing here but with room for experimentation. After a few listens, it becomes one of the standout tracks.
Title track ‘Automaton' departs briefly from the otherwise somewhat nostalgic flavour. It leans much more towards a strong electronic dance beat, with deep vocoders and punching drum beats. Lead single ‘Cloud 9’ starts to stick its head back into the disco vibe. It’s the most balanced song on the album keeping all its elements of electronica, funk and dance very well without going too far in one direction. It’s this balance that makes it the best track on the album. All the effects, guitar licks and vocals lend themselves to each other perfectly and there’s a sense of holding back in the chorus which leaves some tension in the mix.
‘Summer Girl’ is a personal favourite, it has a slight cheese to it which works brilliantly in the context, with some great washing guitars and synth lines. It's a song you’d write in your head for a fantasy girl. Following this is ‘Nights Out In The Jungle’ which has basslines galore. It probably boasts the smoothest bassline of the past few years, oozing with cool. It’s a song to prowl through a cool 70s New York night to.
On tracks like ‘Dr Buzz’ things become more developed and refined. The song takes a step back from the rest of the album. It’s still got the loose free feel but doesn’t give all its cards away at once. It has that ‘Get Lucky’ factor with its harmonising backing vocals. It adds all the elements from the album such as the disco guitars and Daft Punk synth lines but it does these things more subtly instead of throwing it all in one pot. The song breaks and has a wonderful jazzy bridge and completely develops the song, making it almost unrecognisable from the start. It's in progressions like this where the album will really work its magic on you; it defies your expectations of where you think the music is going, throwing in some great harmonising guitar lines and a soulful backing.
The album does occasionally sound a little all over the shop, making the songs sound like a collection of different singles rather than a flowing album. This doesn’t detract from the individual songs and the result is not confused, more eclectic. It tries to accomplish lots of different things at once and does all of those things very well.
While the aftertaste of Automaton is a little cheesy for me, fans of classic disco hooks and choruses will get their fix in spades, particularly on tracks like ‘Summer Girl’ and in particular ‘Hot Property’ . Overall Automaton is a very bold, fun and free album. There’s a lot more going on under its funky disco sheen than a non aficionado like myself may initially think. It wears its influences on its sleeve and achieves everything it appears to be trying to accomplish. I imagine it will create some very mixed opinions but I can safely plant my feet it the pro Automaton camp.
Chris Middleton
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