Jacques Bon – A Long Way
artwork A Long Way
This deep house record has been on my review list since it was published July 2022. A Long Way performed by Jacques Bon and produced by Vincent Drux was released under the renowned label Smallville Records. Jacques Bon himself was running the Paris branch of the Smallville record store for 13 years (2006 – 2019) until it closed down; though the label itself still exists. From the start I was hooked by A Long Way.
When listening to this record you can certainly take A Long Way in the literal sense, though not in a tedious way. Even if the music has a dark and gloom character, the length of the 'way' comes forth in a diverse and agitating sense.
A Long Way splits up into two different styles of tracks that alternate over the course of the album: One character I identify is that of toughness and suspicion, which musically gets transmitted by deep, monotonous bass-heavy patterns. This 'monotony' gets broken up by the second character: enlightening sequences of a celestial ease - influences of ambient sounds and moderate melodies.
Both of these elements are easily discernable in the first track “Distant Voices”. Lucent sounds of bright colours lead into the beginning of the album. The brightness gets cut off by a musty bass drum, sounding as if the bass is still buried underground. With these two sound elements the track forms itself into an atmosphere both hesitant and animated.
The following two tracks “Celeste” and “Mirage” both continue with that dark and even more discomforting effect: thus I hear some of that gravelling tone like in “Celeste” – it is as if somebody is stirring in a big indefinable liquid substance. You are left both curious but hesitant. With “Mirage” the path will carry on even hazier. A monotonous dark bass line in combination with a shrill but muffled, vage melody leaves you feeling intimidated.
The next track “Space Ways” clears up the atmosphere slowly. A strong beat is underlaid with a shimmering spheric sound pattern. Botanical snippets and a soothing vocal ease up the 'Long Way'.
The shimmering tone gets carried on in “Radiance”, however it takes on a much more roughness over its course. The main percussion element that starts off slowly sounds more and more distorted and metallic. The same process carries on in “Your Wings” with similar metallic beats, however much sharper and forceful. Once again a lucent soft component will discharge the tension of the track.
Having almost arrived at the end of the record, with “Elevate” we are left with a trotting, deep yet spherical touch suggesting a cool down, though the album ends with its most dynamic track- “Sandstorm”. It insists with a deep but simple techno pattern underlaid yet again with the stirring motive of “Celeste”. Once you find yourself drawn into the driving power of the stompy beat, gentle percussions will decrease the speed cooling off the tempo. But the tempo will change back as it increases one more time, finally climaxing in a joint arrangement with the strong beat form the beginning. Soon they both fade out gently and illusively.
Gentle and illusive – In that sense I experienced the entire journey of A Long Way. For me it is the perfect combination of profound rhythms that come forth sort of mystifying and dark. It consists of great repetition as well as numerous details which make it as diverse.
Listen to A Long Way on Spotify:
