One record at a time: 82. Digitalism - .JPEG

It took me a while to work out what this release was and I'm still confused about what it is called. The sleeve says the album is called .JPEG but Discogs lists it as JPEG_Complete and most people seem to refer to it as JPEG. Wikipedia gives us no idea as it doesn't even have an entry for the album.

As I understand it, this is a double vinyl release of the 2019 JPEG album which includes three extra tracks from the "Chapter Y" EP of 2021. Personally I am just pleased that some bands continue to release physical product and am content to refer to it as JPEG.

The title track is tinged with eighties house sensibilities and has a great groove. Whilst the lyrics are a little one dimensional, "JPEG" proves to be a perfect introduction and one of the highlights. "Panavision" builds into a dance track that has a syncopated beat that reminds me a little of drum and bass. There is a guest vocal from Louisahhh!!! on DISC_404 but it sounds like it belongs on a long lost album by The Prodigy circa 1997.  

"Chrome.exe" is another noisy instrumental club track that I'm having trouble digesting at 9am. The tracklist of the digital album and the vinyl become divergent here with the pounding beats of "Wish I Was There" being followed by the lacklustre and frankly annoying "Olympia". There are more eighties house vibes with "Knight Life" which develops into a nice track but is a tad too long. "Infinity" is immediately identifiable as a Digitalism track with it distorted lead and octave bassline. We hear a guitar for the first time on "No Data" which is as close to an 'indie-dance' track as you are going to get on this album. 

At this point it occurs to me that Digitalsim seem to have moved out of their usual formula or creating either club tracks or indie-dance pop; there's something more here. However, just as I began to hope they had left the French house pastiche behind them we hear "Voltage" which is more Daft Punk than Daft Punk. "Data Gardens" provides some respite from the pounding beats but by this stage everything is beginning to sounds the same. This isn't a bad album, but it isn't their best. 3/5

One record at a time: 81. Digitalism - Mirage

I bought this record when it was released in 2016. I think I must have listened to it, decided it was another nice Daft Punk pastiche and promptly forgotten about it. 

Fast forward around three years and I was on a long and stressful train journey listening to my phone whilst it played on shuffle. As I sped through the countryside, a mysterious piece of music began to play in my earphones. The blurred images and flashes of light coming in through the window seemed perfectly attuned to the music and I became transfixed. Only when the song had finished could I wake my phone and see what had been playing. As it turned out the track was "Mirage, Pt 1" from this album and it led me to reappraise this record. Whilst I no longer neglect this album, it has been a while since I listened to it so I'm looking forward to giving it a spin again.

Digitalism songs tend to fall into two camps: disco stompers or indie-dance tracks. The first two tracks on this album illustrate this dichotomy perfectly. "Arena" is a slice of satisfying dance music that is redolent of Daft Punk and "Battlecry" is a catchy indie-pop song with a distinctive chorus. I can just imagine the third track "Go Time" being played in a tent at Glastonbury with bucket hat wearing young men singing along in appreciation - not somewhere I long to be. "Utopia" continues the pattern of schizophrenic style swapping and is an arpeggio driven EDM creation. The hook on "Destination Breakdown" doesn't quite deliver for me and the whole thing is a little too noisy, but "Open Waters" is much more successful.

I regard the two part, twelve minute opus that is the title track as the zenith of this album. When "Mirage, Pt, 1" opens you could be forgiven for thinking some sort of fault had occurred as the synths burble and pulsate erratically. As more layers are added the sound becomes mesmerising until our reverie is broken by a pounding kick drum. The finale of the track sees us gently lowered into the melodic introduction of Part Two, which then evolves into a slightly more beat driven piece. "Indigo Skies" and "The Ism" are rare misfires that are best forgotten but "Dynamo" moves outside of the usual Digitalism formula with more success. As the album plays out there is a fine slice of  French House courtesy of "No Cash". which pounds away like its 1997 all over again. A slight less rewarding experience that some of the band's other albums but there are some fine moments. 4/5

One record at a time: 80. Digitalism - I Love You, Dude

Whilst I bought Digitalism's first album in 2007 on CD, I didn't have the foresight to buy it on LP. As a consequence, their second album, "I Love You, Dude", is the first I own on vinyl.

According to Discogs my copy of the album is from 2011, but I'm not sure that is accurate as I didn't buy it from Amazon until 2019. Interestingly, this is one of few records I own that came with a plastic credit card containing the download code rather than a piece of paper.

As I listen to this album, I seem to be forced to compare each song to someone else's work. There's a strong influence of Daft Punk running throughout and I hear elements of contemporaries, Simian Mobile Disco, Justice and AIR to name but a few. That's not to say these aren't original songs and nearly all of them are very good, it's just that some sound highly derivative.

Broadly speaking, Digitalism songs seem to fit in two different camps: house stompers and indie-tinged electronic pop. Whilst the latter style is where Digitalism are at their most original, this is where I find them least interesting.

"Stratosphere" is an impressive slice of electronic dance music with a strong French house feel. The second track "2 Hearts" drops the pounding dance beats and is more like a traditional pop song replete with vocal. "Circles" is another more conventional song with strong Tomcraft vibes and another nice vocal from Jens. My favourite track is house stomper "Blitz". This track is nothing short of genius with its stuttering riffs and a great trance arpeggio played on what sounds like an FM synth.

"Forrest Gump" has good verses but the chorus annoys me a little. We flip back to more dance orientated material with "Reeperbahn" and "Antibiotics" before diving off into AIR territory with "Just Gazin'". "Miami Showdown" is Daft Punk by numbers but "Encore" is a more considered piece of electronic music. "Blade" is pounding club track that is probably the hardest thing on here. This is a bit of a schizophrenic album but I enjoy it a lot. 4/5