Artist: Maya Jane Coles
Album: Comfort
Label: I/Am/Me
Release Date: 1/07/2013
I so wanted to love this album. I have yet to experience a less-than-excellent set from Maya Jane Coles, so many of her original singles like 'Hummingbird' and 'What They Say' are my go-to session tunes and I've been sporting a mild girl-crush on this poker-faced musician since she possibly faintly smiled at me across the decks whilst dropping Zebra Katz ‘Imma Read' in the El Salon at Space Ibiza last year. What I'm reluctantly getting at is that Maya Jane Coles debut album ‘Comfort' just didn't quite live up.
This acknowledged, ‘Comfort' has its moments of splendour. The pre-released single ‘Everything' is full of intensity – the best of the lot. Smoothly rounded synthezisers compliment the sharp, icy vocals of Scandinavian Karin Park, her post-chorus flute-like cooing providing a catchy riff to float above the deep organ tones. Opener and title track ‘Comfort' is also gorgeous, instantly creating a dark and mysterious atmosphere with a rippling broken minor chord pattern that hypnotically swirls around your head and lulls you into the deepest of musical comas.
Her variation in beats and rhythms across the album is another successful feature; the tempo fluctuates between tracks, exploring not just house influences but dub, trip hop and ambient percussive styles. But it's not enough to break up what seems to be the greatest flaw in this album, its homogeny. Coles has worked with a varied and talented selection of vocalists including Tricky, Kim Ann Foxman (of Hercules and Love Affair) and Miss Kitten – and yet all vocals come across as the same smooth, soulful and understated style - including Coles' own - with lyrics borderline prosaic at times. The same regularity can be found in instrument choice. There isn't one song on the album which doesn't sound pleasant at worst, but when listened together their similarities in mood, tone colour and harmony (this is a unflinchingly ‘minor' album) result in the album flat lining.
‘Comfort' is Album of the Week because Maya Jane Coles knows how to produce quality – and she's done it here - quite consistently over twelve tunes. But consistency isn't what we love her for; this album is missing a risk.
Tracklist:
01. Comfort
02. Easier To Hide
03. Burning Bright feat. Kim Ann Foxman
04. Dreamer
05. Blame feat. Nadine Shah
06. Stranger
07. Everything feat. Karin Park
08. Fall From Grace feat. Catherine Pockson of Alpines
09. Wait For You feat. Tricky
10. When I'm In Love feat. Thomas Knights
11. Take A Ride feat. Miss Kitten
12. Come Home
