Today Montréal native Jacques Greene has released his latest EP via Hudson Mohawke's LuckyMe imprint. The EP, On Your Side, features three tracks showcasing Greene's developing soul-infused blend of UK garage and house. This is the sort of quality release you come to expect from a label like LuckyMe and we're thrilled to have it.
Drawing a similar sonic style from that of his UK counterparts in Gorgon City and Disclosure (and American producer Kastle), Jacques Greene crafts twinkling soundscapes evoking a tenderness fit for your classed up affairs or pensive nights. Greene gracefully conjures a classic dance vibe while simultaneously balancing a futuristic atmosphere and sensuality; seemingly come from an otherworldly source. Using expressive, skittering percussion and Robin Thicke-esque vocals Greene make for an intimate sonic delight with inventive, if not unexpected sounds in xylophones and steel drums. In using such creative sounds, Greene asks us to reconsider our notions of what actually constitutes as R&B, future bass, and soul. While the EP's opening title track has an intensely jazzified and future R&B tone, it does have shades of brightness in it that evolve into something more as the EP progresses. With that progression, the EP as a whole becomes lighter, the percussion intensifies and becomes punchier and more deliberate.
The EP exhibits Greene's mastery as he manages to make at once a decidedly underground record while consciously going into a pop direction. Infectious vocal hooks, memorable melodies make this a wide-appealing number and it's got a certain class to it that festival-sized anthems just do not. At the same time, what makes this such a standout is also what makes it an underground record. The EP will undoubtedly not get the shine it truly deserves because, largely speaking, we live in a world where the likes of auto-tuned vocals and low-brow sexually suggestive lyrics about "getting wet" become hits. A touch of new age, a dash of classic dance and a healthy dose of a underground flavor, there's something undeniably timely as well as timeless about this EP. Greene synthesizes current trends and styles while also carving out his own niche and in doing so makes this a release that is well worth repeated listens.
