I first heard of badbadnotgood when my housemate dragged me along to an intimate gig at the Harley. I miss that venue. A venue in Sheffield where I’d witnessed an eclectic mish-mash of incredible artists ranging from Giggs to Floating Points to Joe Goddard.
After their performance, I was hooked. The band has produced nearly an album a year since, working with many incredibly talented and acclaimed artists in hip-hop and elsewhere.
The latest instalment hasn’t failed to impress, an album packed with beautiful collaborations like the ones fellow Canadian’s Kaytranda and Charlotte Day Wilson. Taking elements of Hip-Hop, R&B and Jazz from their previous work to create a perfect accompaniment to a sunny afternoon. This may be described as jazz, but I have been won over by this bands accessibility. The Ontarian’s (is that right? I hope that’s right) have worked with the likes of Odd Future, Frank Dukes, Ghostface Killah, Earl Sweatshirt and started over their love for jazz. It’s themselves and artists like Flying Lotus, Thundercat and Kamasi Washington who have opened me up to exploring jazz. Such a huge mass of untapped music left to be explored.
Although a fantastic album, it doesn’t contain the same energy which drew me to the band during their live gigs. I haven’t seen them since 2013 when their shows contained a youthful energy characterised by ‘Since You Asked Kindly’ from the album III
Upon writing this, I realised I haven’t given the album ‘Sour Soul’ collab with Ghost Faced Killah my full attention. The soundtrack to tonight, sorted!
2B 