Techno fans who have never heard of Basement Jaxx just might want to pay closer attention. The Jaxx clandestinely permeate our everyday lives - whether it's their song "Red Alert" in a Diet Coke commercial, in the background of a radio ad for the Avalon, or even inside the club itself.
Simon Ratcliffe and Felix Buxton, the masterminds behind Basement Jaxx, have been the prodigal sons of the underground English house music scene since coming together in 1994. Their status as underground innovators drew what they like to call "properly pissed party people," and more than a few American technophiles. But unlike fellow Brits Fatboy Slim and the Chemical Brothers, they seemed to be content as fixtures the alternative club scene.
Their 1999 debut album Remedy reached the top of the U.K. album charts, produced three number one singles for the Billboard Club Charts, and was adored by major music critics and Ibiza clubbers. Somehow they've managed to remain relatively unnoticed by American audiences.
This same fate might not befall their second CD, Rooty, which was released this past summer. Past recordings have been heavily influenced by salsa, reggae, and disco music, and while the same can be found in Rooty in some shape or form, the album is much more streamlined, more of an amalgam of these and other influences. All in all, Rooty gives a truly "world music" vibe.
Ratcliffe and Burton waste no time in letting their talent shine. "Romeo" is an amazing opening track, and one of the first singles released from the CD. It is also representative of what the rest of the album has in store: bounciness (thanks to a great bass line, which can be subtle at one moment, front-and-center the next), and undeniable catchiness, which can be attributed to the plethora of female vocalists the duo tapped to spice up their beats.
Many electronic music artists put a lot of effort into their first track and subsequently seem to forget what it was that made the first song so solid. Not Basement Jaxx. "Romeo" is just the jumping off point for a great ride. It would be unfair to pick a few songs from this CD and refer to them as the "best" tracks. Each song on this CD is as unique as the last, and each could be released to DJs for use at clubs.
Any good techno/house album should make the listener want to dance; that quality is so pervasive in Rooty that it's almost too obvious to mention. What's more interesting is the nuances of moods that Basement Jaxx takes its listeners through. Oddly, the songs are structured - not only lyrically and melodically, but also through the titles - to tell a story. It's a night out clubbing that ends in a one night stand, and its surprisingly fulfilling aftermath.
"Romeo" features lyrics about a breakup the singer wants to forget, stirring up the need for her to "Breakaway" in the second track and go have fun. The breathy incantations of "Kissalude" and the aggressive statement of sexuality in "SFM" are the manifestation of the fun, flirtatious atmosphere of the whole CD. The dance floor cravings of "Jus 1 Kiss" and "I Want You" lead to the pseudo-climax of "Get Me Off": "Give your body to me/Let your body be free/I wanna undress you, I wanna caress you/Don't wanna be coy, It's time to get me off."
The start of "Where's Your Head At" sounds strikingly like the Beastie Boys, complementing the relatively slow "Crazy Girl" nicely, before the perky, almost-pop rhythms of "Do Your Thing." It's even more satisfying when you realize that you're at the end of the CD, and the music's energy and quality has not once decreased.
Basement Jaxx is performing at the Avalon on Oct. 19. Tickets can be purchased online athttp://www.dlclive.com/venues/avalon-concerts.asp<$>
@thumbnail: CD Review, Basement Jaxx - Rooty, Astralwerks Records, 4 stars
@edits: sg, rb, rc
