This is the second solo album by the drummer Jim White rather than the country singing Jim White. The album is produced by Guy Picciotto and Jim White and features a collaboration with Zoh Amba, the album was mastered by Mikey Young.
The album opens with Death Day a slow dirge on organ like synths, life slowly ebbs away. What's Really Happening is that your slowly starting to unwind and allow the minimal beats to bliss you out and drift into a dream state. The Titles rattle by with some spare keyboards and gentle percussive touches.
Longwood for me evokes childhood memories of going to Longwood Garden to any of the three entrances to Clayhall Park and all the fun we had there, as well as racing our bikes up Longwood Gardens, a great two mile long straight road, that the dark keys and minimalist drumming make feel like we are about to be attacked and need to run for our lives. The sparser parts feel strangely dangerous like you are trying to get the guts up to use the toilets in the park, hoping no old men are lurking about in there.
Cloudy you lay back looking up at that cloudy sky and this tune helps make those clouds move and mutate. Stepping has an almost military two step beat and slow bass drum for a slow ascent up those stairs to who knows where.
Two Ruffy's is I assume a tribute to the drum god Dave Ruffy and his new knee, although this isn't as dubby as his drumming often is, it does have that sense of space and adventure. The keys come to the fore in tribute to the other Ruffy whoever he or she may be.
The title song Inner Day features Jim on lead vocals narrating a tale of life's twists and turns, we find out what Jim tells himself to get through the day. The Blinded Bird is a soft coda for the stricken Bird.
I Don't Do/Grand Central is Jim reworking some Suzanne Vega with help from Zoh Amba, this is a rap sung conversation come rant, with ambient atmospherics that is surprisingly catchy and effective, while we wonder how Zoh managed to get her feet drenched in white wine.
Thanksgiving (Three Dead Walls) I think he means that those walls have no resonance or reverb style qualities, so add nothing to the tonal synth and expressive percussion urging you to be truly thankful at thanksgiving.
11.12.24. the day Archbishop Welby resigned or odd socks day if you prefer, I don't know what event Jim is referencing, but the slow church like organ and distended drum forays seem to imply it was not a very happy day for him. By the time the cymbals really come in it feels like a nasty event has just occurred.
The album closes with Anniversary that has a gamelan percussion feel, against the sifting tonality of the keyboard to help make that Anniversary memorable.
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