Afterhours
Volume Six
Instinct
This CD, the sixth release in a series that Instinct has released, is described as “late night electronica and cool jazz.” I think a better way to describe this would be “jazzy ambient elevator music” – in other words, this CD has about as much energy as a bowl full of lukewarm oatmeal.
Not to say, though, that the music here is bad, because it’s not. There is definitely some good work on here. Yenneh’s “Cape Town” is by far the best track here – it’s an electro-kissed, jazzy, downtempo masterpiece, while the quiet ambiance and complex crawling drumlines of Stade’s “Stadium” make it a standout in the crowd. Other notables include tracks by newcomer Futique, lb, Shantel, and Moodorama.
I’ve never been a big fan of categorizing something as “background music,” but in this case, I’ll make an exception. Although every track on here is well produced and professional, there’s just not enough substance on here to justify a satisfactory listening experience, regardless of what genre it fits into.
Instinct Records, 26 W. 17th St. #502-A, New York, NY 10011
