It’s not every day a superstar producer steps out from the shadows to make their solo debut. With over two decades of experience in providing musical service to an endless list of artists, James Ellis Ford is ready to stand in the spotlight on his own. Naturally, he could’ve gone for a feature-heavy showstopper, an ode to collaboration which would have been equally grandiose as he boasts credits with Florence + The Machine, Gorillaz, and Arctic Monkeys, as well as being one half of Simian Mobile Disco. But with a home studio, a vast array of instruments played by his own hands, and a courageous appetite for exploring beyond his comfort zone, Ford’s first album The Hum shows off his talents far more.
You wouldn’t think this is Ford’s first time playing bass clarinet, or singing, or even recording a solo album due to the sheer quality of it. Indeed, the unorthodox opener ‘Tape Loop #7’ bears the mark of a seasoned experimenter, capturing music in an embryonic state with murkily resonant and meditative tones, rising blushes of soft distortion, and warm synth lines bathing in a cosmic soup. Shifting this into the enchanting jazz journey of ‘Pillow Village’, with swirling incandescent winds, syrupy bass plucks, and fried swells of sax aplenty, makes it clear there’s a real master at work here.
‘I Never Wanted Anything’ distills Ford’s wisened everything-but-the-kitchen-sink approach into an angular pop vein, melding the sensibilities of smooth jazz with the playful experimentation of electronica and the UK’s post-punk re-revival. ‘Golden Hour’ channels psychedelic, baroque pastoral scenes with stacked vocals painted in bronze shades, while ‘The Yips’ pays homage to his wife and son’s Palestinian roots with Arabic-influenced melodies and harmonies whizzing dynamically through bubbling grooves, foreshadowing the scintillating gamma ray synth bursts of ‘Caterpillar’ and fiery flashes of guitar in the elegant and heartfelt ‘Emptiness’.
James Ellis Ford has opened a new chapter in his career, spilling his heart and studio contents into his solo debut The Hum