Wax Tailor, aka JC le Saout, made a remarkable impact worldwide with his debut ‘Tales of the Forgotten Melodies’. A sweeping, cinematic hip-hop album that had critics citing similarities to DJ Shadow and RJD2. ‘Tales...’ propelled this Frenchman to stardom in his home country (notching up 60,000 home sales) and his debut was heralded as Radio Nova's album of the year.
Stateside, ‘Tales...’ has spent 100 straight weeks in the iTunes Top Electronic Albums and remains there to date (currently #66). The album topped the CMJ Hip Hop and RPM charts (16 and 13 weeks in the top 20, respectively) and tastemaker radio station, KEXP in Seattle, deemed it one of the best albums of 2006. The breakout single ‘Our Dance’ was heralded as one of the best singles of the year in Playboy Magazine as well as iTunes. Wax also DJ’d at last year’s 60th Cannes Film Festival. Call it downtempo, trip hop or IDM, I don't care, this and Wax Tailor's other album, Tales of the Forgotten Melodies both truly show how electronic music can have soul and at the same time push the boundaries of music. An artist's second album is often seen as the moment of truth. With ‘Hope & Sorrow’, set for release this June, Wax Tailor confirms his musical identity. Often categorized as trip-hop or downtempo hip-hop, Wax Tailor breaks musical barriers using a sonic palette to demonstrate his life chronicles tainted in soul, jazz, and funk. There's no weaknesses here at all, each track has its own vibe, and all the guest vocals are strong. In fact that's one thing that sets this apart from Tailor's debut; his choice of vocals, with more than a few tracks featuring female singers, perfectly compliment the music. If you're a fan of instrumental hip hop in the vein of RJD2, DJ Shadow, DJ Krush, etc., this is a must have. But Wax Tailor has a sound all his own that you can only get a feel for by listening, not comparing, so check it for yourself. Out 2nd June 2008 on Decon.
You Tube Links: Positively Inclined: http://youtube.com/watch?v=muq50a286I8 To Dry Up: http://youtube.com/watch?v=BTkkZndKqdk 
Track List:
01. Once Upon A Past 02. The Way We Lived ft. Sharon Jones 03. The Games You Play ft. Voice 04. The Tune 05. The Man With No Soul ft. Charlotte Savary 06. Radio Broadcast 07. Positively Inclined ft. ASM & Marina Quaisse 08. Sometimes 09. House Of Wax ft. The Others 10. Beyond Words 11. To Dry Up ft. Charlotte Savary 12. We Be ft. Ursula Rucker 13. That Case 14. There Is Danger 15. Alien In My Belly ft. Charlotte Savary Did you enjoy this? Please share or bookmark with:                      |