With our watches an hour forward, shorts making their way to the surface of our drawers and the BBQ dusted off, summer is a-comin’. Just in time for the warm weather, Aussie group Jagwar Ma are bringing the goods for your beach lays and afternoon raves.
Their new album, Every Now And Then, is pure joy and sunny vibes from start to finish with a sweet concoction of 60s soul classics, garage/techno beats and psychedelic hooks.
After touring their first record for three years Jagwar Ma have finally dropped their sophomore Every Now And Then, another instant classic.
Similar to their debut album, Howlin’ (2013), Every Now And Then was recorded in the French country town of La Breche among the ruins of an old sunflower farm. It’s a place close to the hearts of the crew, who were keen to be back in the studio after what seemed like an endless string of tours.
Alongside singer and guitarist Gabriel Winterfield, multi-instrumentalist/producer Jono Ma and bassist Jack Freeman, the album also includes contributions on drums from Stella Mozgawa (Warpaint), timpani by James Ford and mixing by DJ Ewan Pearson.
The opening track Falling is a collage of synths and reverb that is a wonderfully subtle introduction into the lush sounds of the album. From here, it’s an adventure into tropical colours, funky samples and echoing vocal layers reminiscent of a Tame Impala record with some underlying garage rhythms that you can whole-heatedly get down to.
The latest single Give Me A Reason displays a foray into techno realms never before trodden by Jagwar Ma, it’s latter half occupied by an absolutely beastly kick-hat breakdown.
While the album is grounded in these psych-dance grooves, there is some real depth being communicated lyrically as well. Say What You Feel is a much-needed cry for honesty in our relationships with people. So much heartbreak can be caused in our selfish need to save face, to not be vulnerable or by just being too apathetic to say anything real to someone.
The powerful line “pride has no place in this room” was an inspired thought stemming from gospel preachers passionately challenging their congregations.
Beyond the lyrics, the record keeps you smiling, from the sun baking feels in Ordinary, to the banging bass line of OB-1. Towards the back half of the album, Don’t Make It Right takes the first steps off dry land and dives deep into the ocean amongst the whales, before resurfacing in Colours Of Paradise, a wonderfully warm track to move to.
After listening to the album, you’ll be nothing but excited for the long summer days ahead and for future music from the boys. Every Now and Then is a sultry dream of whimsical romance, sweaty beats and an all round good time.
You can catch Jagwar Ma at Laneway Festival early next year, likely followed by around a million Aussie shows in the coming years.
