Review Summary: This is baby-making music.
If you are just suffering from the lack of modern jazz nowadays I don’t blame you. I too was after anything while scouring for similar artists like Jaga Jazzist, The Cinematic Orchestra, or Skalpel. Nothing came close, after all those are some of the top tier nu/acid jazz bands out there. So I finally stumbled onto the abnormal sounding Xploding Plastix and damn am I pissed I never really interested in them until now. When I speak of Xploding Plastix and their style I’m really edging towards bands like Skalpel. For one their sound is organic, encountered with a bit of edge, and all the acidy jazz you would want. Their debut
Amateur Girlfriends Go Proskirt Agents may be the closest relative to Skalpel, but adherently a strange brew of toned down Richard D. James thrown into a frenzy of The Cinematic Orchestra. The Norwegian duo Jens Petter Nilsen and Hallvard Hagen started around 1999 and only two years passed until
Amateur Girlfriends Go Proskirt Agents was released under Norwegian label Beatservice.
I don’t think they’re would be any better time than right now to point out the mild qualms I have with this debut. Xploding Plastix manages to really punch through basics of modern jazz and tries to experiment quite a bit adding weight in certain tracks, while approaching it with casual glee like The Cinematic Orchestra, above all of these things the most noticeable problem is the amount of jerkin’ around they do. Absolutely, this is freedom at its best, extremely relaxed and smooth, but sometimes the purpose of this record may be bogged down by the amount of time the listener needs to get used to. Interestingly enough the band likes to approach each track differently, adding a bit of variety within the music, this can be tiresome for many, but for nu-jazz/acid-jazz fans this was meant for you so why not? “Sports, Not Heavy Crime” may be what you’ve been looking for, but Xploding Plastix tries to turn you on your head while adding an electronic eeriness and drum heavy “Funnybones & Lazylegs”. And this is where it all starts. Noticing how these small different approaches really change the album completely. The sound itself can’t be pinpointed at one spot as the each track moves differently. One thing remains is the overall warmth
Amateur Girlfriends Go Proskirt Agents brings. The lush jazz sound that
Amateur Girlfriends Go Proskirt Agents brings is completely brimming with warmth and doesn’t change even with the variety of different approaches the album takes. For any jazz record to work you sincerely need the heart and soul of what you’ve been working on in the record. It absolutely shows on
Amateur Girlfriends Go Proskirt Agents.
Amateur Girlfriends Go Proskirt Agents may take one different approaches to an overall sound, but it doesn’t really detract from its overall mood and abundance. “Behind The Eightball” is extremely addictive, not because of the basic structure, but the subtle electronic sequences that elevate it to great heights. The same can be said for other tracks, using different approaches. The water-heaviness that the bass brings to “Single Stroke Ruffs” is complimented well with keyboard piano and occasional sample here and there. If you’re looking for more speed-oriented stuff then I’m sure you’ll dig “Treat Me Mean, I Need The Reputation”. What I’m trying to say here is there really is everything here for any jazz fan to be interested, old or new.
Amateur Girlfriends Go Proskirt Agents will probably go down as an unknown band, whether in jazz or any other genre, but it will truly stand as one of the best debuts to come out of the genre in a very, very long time.
