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Review Prior to the album's release in April they attracted the attention of Gilles Peterson, amongst others, who enlisted their skills to remix Terry Callier's "Love Theme From Spartacus" and in addition, producer and friend Nigel Godrich asked them to remix "Climbing Up The Walls" for Radiohead. Faith in their abilities has been rewarded with a record that will force many to reassess the bench mark in British music.
Unlike the fifteen piece (yes, it does take that many musicians to recreate the sound) band employed for their stunning live show, Zero 7 are principally a duo, namely Sam Hardaker and Henry Binns. From North London, both studied sound engineering and sharpened their production skills before making the decision to break out on their own.
In piecing the record together Sam and Henry have pulled together some exceptional vocal talent, providing diversity to the recording as well as the live outing. Mozez, who on tracks "I Have Seen" and "Simple Things" demonstrates a sweet, soul delivery that will please fans of Marvin Gaye and Maxwell alike. The distinctive, dulcet tones of Australian born Sia Furler embellish the lush instrumentation of "Distractions" with more husk than a wheat field whilst the vocal partnership with the sublime and as yet unsigned Sophie Barker on "Destiny" soar on a summer thermal to new heights.
Characterised by Rhodes piano, sweeping strings and gentle, parping brass their music is way beyond the monikers of 'chill out' or 'ambient', it is soul food from the lounge room at the end of the universe. Ignore any comparisons you might read or hear about this band, whatever they are they won't do Zero 7 any justice, the only thing that will is your undivided attention. A must have. --Christian Hopwood
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But, I have more to add: for the first half of the album I reckon they actually top their chilled-out, Frenchie counterparts.
The album's very much like Moon Safari, but with more basslines, beats, twists and turns. The first track is a classic, starting with a great bassline. And it carries on much the same, with tracks much more varied (I think) than the Air LP.
The album did start to lose my attention towards the end, however (hence the 4 stars rather than 5). But this perhaps just shows that I've spent too much time listening to the first few cool tracks.
So, if you are an Air fan, we've all establised you'll definitely like this. If you are not an Air fan, or have not sampled them already, give it a whirl. It's certainly good medicine following a hard day in the office.
Enjoy.
Having heard a couple of their songs on various chillout compilations, I decided to order the album and I can say that it more than met my expectations of them. The album produces a variety of different styles from jazz to soul to trip-hop and their is a great balance between the number of instrumental and vocal tracks.
The standout tracks for me are the catchy bass lines and beautiful background melodies of “Polaris”, the smooth flowing and dreamy guitar cords of “Give It Away” and the excellent vocals and slow moving rhythm of “In The Waiting Line”. To be honest, though, every track has something different to offer and it is an album that I can listen to all day and never get bored of. It’s a very poignant album and I’m not embarrassed to say that it sometimes makes me feel quite emotional when listening to it, such is the excellence of the album.
The superb vocals of Sia Furler and Sophie Barker further immerse you in Zero 7s unique brand of cool, sexy, downtempo music and leave a lasting impression on you and a tingle down your spine.
All in all, this is a brilliantly produced and well crafted debut album from a duo who don’t necessarily get the attention they thoroughly deserve for creating such a musical masterpiece. If your looking for an album that is refreshing, relaxing and let’s you unwind at the end of a long day, then you can’t go wrong with “Simple Things”.
Better than Air, believe the hype.
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