Album Review: Jamie Lidell - Jamie Lidell

Throughout his career UK-cum-US vocalist Jamie Lidell has blithely shaken his rump in a musical no-man's land between pop, dance, funk, soul and the 'underground'. His 2008 album, Jim, skipped blissfully through the funkier side of '70s soul while the follow up, Compass, was directed into Prince-like areas under the playful eye of Beck. Taking a further step in that direction, his latest, eponymously-named album teases up its hair, squeezes into an electric blue leather suit and busts an early '80s funk that would have Rick James spinning on his crack pipe. Taking its cue from James, D-Train, The Gap Band and of course the Paisley one, Lidell has fully immersed himself in the analogue funk of the era, a sound that helped create modern R&B and house music.

But back to the music at hand, opening tracks I'm Selfish and Big Love create a sassy dancefloor maelstrom before being stripped right back to the raw, noisy, robotic sex machine thrusts of What A Shame. Production-wise Lidell shows no shame, happy to wield the cheesiest, most ridiculous of '80s synth riffology; the spirit of Roger Troutman is exhumed on Do Yourself A Favour's vocoder refrains while the Moogs are allowed to run rampant on Lidell's ode to taking responsibility for ones actions, Blaming Something, a rare moment of thematic restraint in a whirlwind of funky hedonism. The only time Lidell steps away from this glorious codpiece funk is on Why Ya Why, a weird rogue-botic N'awlins jazz swamp-stomp. Though fans of Sam Sparro would definitely find some joy in Jamie Lidell the album, this white boy's voyage into jheri curl-juiced electro-funk is nowhere as commercial, and infinitely more enjoyable.