Customer Reviews

Whiskey

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This first album by an unknown Swede got 200% deserved critical acclaim when it was released here (France) a couple years ago, but I passed it by at the time while making a mental note to see what it's like if I got the occasion. Now I feel like someone who would have been offered Nokia shares ten years ago and wd have turned the offer down: cheated, gutted, angry for having lived all along without Jay Jay's soothing voice. It's such a strange and warm and delicate sound that comes from Johanson's emaciated body, with a bit of Scott Walker in it and undeniably clever arrangements: strings and beats and godknowswhat, that locate this album in time (it couldn't possibly have been there before Portishead and the other Bristol sound pioneers) but just fail to make it sound "dated". Jog alskar dig Jay Jay!

First time I heard Jay Jay Johanson was in 1998 in one of those European MTV night mixes and since Whiskey came out it has been hardly a week that I didn't listen to a track or two from this masterpiece. If your brain wavelength is in synch with Portishead and Tricky you will fall in love with sophisticated, laid back and mellow sound of this Swedish band.

This is back in 1997 during a summer in Provence that I discovered Jay jay J. This singer is great. The music a bit electro and the weird voice creates something that I haven't heard since The Cure. That album is great and quiet.

Jay-Jay Johanson's first album, WHISKEY, is certainly a product of its time: when Portishead-style Bristol trip-hop ruled the earth. Even so, Johanson's plaintive vocals still soar above the scratches and vinyl crackles of "It Hurts Me So" or the more pared-down "The Girl I Love Is Gone." "I'm Older Now" takes a slow, semi-martial beat and backs it with some long horns before Johanson's voice beckons a more skittery rhythm to take over in the "Extended Beats" section. The bizarre country sound of "Tell Me Like It Is" defies Bristol, however, as does the sexy-making "I Fantasize of You." But the obvious standout is "So Tell the Girls That I Am Back in Town," which could almost givce the Rat Pack a run for its money. For pop-trip-hop, Johanson makes a strong, sincere effort.

Jay-Jay has since this album gone on to less of a trip-hop sound. Depending on your taste, that's either a good or a bad thing. As far as I'm concerned, well, this is his crowning achievement and a definate must-own for lovers of the genre or just good music in general. Jay-Jay has a genuinely affecting voice which strikes the right balance between boozy come-ons and genuine heartbreak. His voice (and this album) actually remind me a lot of Beth Gibbons of Portishead fame. Like Gibbons, Jay-Jay's voice is fragile yet sure, not the loudest but surely unforgettable. Whereas Gibbon's voice holds the disperate elements of Portishead's arrangements together, Jay-Jay's voice is the prime element/instrument here, with the lush/lovely backings complimenting him while in their own right being almost perfect. I give this album 4 stars not because it's not great, but because it ends a little too soon and could of benefited from one or two more tracks. Still, there's something to be said for brevity and being efficient, which this album surely is. If you've read this far, buy this album already!!!