Recommended: Llop – “J, Imp”

This is rainy day music.  J, Imp is dreamy and hazy and it hangs in the air like the enveloping arms of fading sunlight.  But rainy days also come with startling flashes of lightning and the deep rumble of thunder.  Tracks like “Älskling” and “Hapii Too” elicit the kind of imagery whose only goal is to lull the listener into a meditative state, but the quartet Llop is all about a well-rounded rainy day experience, and so the edgy displays of  searing electronic effects and the pulsing rhythms of “Seagal” and the quick melodic strikes of “Troupeau” sound right in place with the overall experience.  And then there’s the steady downpour of title-track “J. Imp,” with a focused melody that touches everything, and bridges the gaps between the storm’s peaceful and chaotic phases.  This is rainy day music, but it’ll no more let you drift off to sleep than it will protect you from the compulsion to daydream.  And no one state is less compelling than the other.

Your album personnel:  Erik Bogaerts (saxophone), Benjamin Sauzereau (guitar), Brice Soniano (double bass), Jens Bouttery (drums, voice & electronics).

Released on El Negocito Records.

Listen to more of the album on the label’s Bandcamp page.

Music from Antwerp, Belgium.

Available at:  Bandcamp | CDBaby