Can the follow up to the wonderful debut album Silence is Loud measure up?
It is fair to say Reading Indie Life are not huge listeners of drum and bass and jungle music. Sometimes an album just connects in the most wonderful way and so it was with Silence is Loud. Coming in at number 23 on our albums of the year for 2024 it was just a joyous blast of energy from start to finish. The songs were extremely well constructed, her vocals were great, the lyrics full of warmth and humour. It even had a Columbo sample used to perfection.
Emotional Junglist retains much of the energy of its predecessor. What really strikes you in the first few tracks is that guitars are really to the fore. It shouldn’t surprise as Nia Archives has remixed a range of indie tracks including the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Whilst the drums felt more important last time, the bass in guitar form is much more present here. ‘Feelingz Go Numb’ picks up where we previously left off. ‘Around Tha Bend’ has the best guitar hook on the album. Single ‘Danger’ is lyrically not for anyone who blushes easily. The first part of the album focuses on an intense relationship, the music is giddy and heady, best represented by ‘Vertical.’ We are swept up into this emotional high, invested into the relationship. ‘This Could Be’ spells it out. “I’m hopeless in love. I have a history of that. Maybe you’re the one to shake my bad luck.”
‘Dance With Me 2nite’ slows things down as much as a drum and bass track will permit. The bass is almost Peter Hook like in the background. It shows a versatility that will allow her to maintain a long career.
There are just a couple of guest spots. The first is the excellent Jorja Smith who provides vocals on ‘Get Me Down.’ The second is Sampha. The London born singer and producer is one of the ultimate collaborators, having worked with Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Frank Ocean, Jessie Ware, Alicia Keys, Travis Scott, Gorillaz and many, many more top artists.
The relationship is going off the rails by the end of the album. ‘Tha Darkest Hour’ and ‘Lovers Grief’ both hinting at the content from the titles.
I am not convinced this quite captures the same level of lightning in a bottle that Silence is Loud did. What it does do though is show that Nia Archives is a serious long-term prospect. There are tonnes of ideas and plenty to say contained within this collection. This is a unique talent, one that evokes nostalgia for a period in time where drum and bass briefly dominated the scene, whilst also being absolutely fresh and forward facing. Nobody else is doing drum and bass and jungle quite like this.
Essential tracks: ‘Around Tha Bend,’ ‘Vertical,’ ‘Get Me Down,’ ‘There Goes My Head,’ ‘Tender,’ ‘Lovers Grief’ and ‘Boys In Blue.’
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