Album Notes by The Olde Wee Plinth

What did you think happened? That Jason Lee Dunkley had disappeared off the face of music? That his muse had escaped whilst he tended to other matters? Or simply that he was now a listener, no longer a creator of terrific pop?
Either way, all talk has been laid to rest with this, his debut solo offering, which should be an opportune moment for us to finally hear just JLD and his trusted acoustic guitar, together as they were always meant to be, right?
Wrong, friend.
Under the guise of Jump Look Drop these five tracks are unencumbered with the weight of JLD’s previous outings. Everything’s new. The songs are different; musically oddball, more textural, lyrically more dynamic, interesting flickers in the production.
His songs have come of age, becoming more rewarding with each listen, more interesting, using a wider palette of colours and shapes.
And then there’s the voice.
Previously a dark, northern, often mournful sounding vehicle, here he has found something he wasn’t even looking for. More confidence, brave harmonies, lilting falsettos, more soul.
Listen to the softly beating She Chose You, for example. Backed by simple drums and electric piano, there’s nowhere for the vocals to hide, so they flaunt themselves instead and he makes the vocal performance of his life so far on what could easily be the greatest song he has ever written. Yet.
That song demonstrates a less-is-more approach that you can also hear in the pattering electronica of I’ve Seen You Naked. Like what Prince might sounds like if he hired Kid A-era Radiohead as his backing band; like stacking a few hundred JLD’s into a tight room to sing their heads off; certainly like nothing you’ve heard before. JLD’s previously unheard falsetto dominates proceedings and what a falsetto!
But let’s go right back to the start. It’s the slow-burning Tokyo that introduces this set and listeners may notice there’s not a guitar to be heard, drum machines, bleeps, strings and JLD’s song of hope and defiance. Turn your stereo up, but not too much. The song builds and some surprises lie in store within its six minutes.
The hardest thing to write is a song of happiness without it dissolving into a mawkish soup. JLD has succeeded; the beauty of All For You is in its simple joy - a catchy melody, a warm heart and a mini pop classic. In the background, simmering synths and a drum kit with no cymbals drive things along behind the singer who sounds at once joyous and effortless.
What would it sound like if you combined Off The Wall-era Michael Jackson with Elbow and a healthy dose of gospel? My First Breath may have the answer. It was the track with the longest gestation; numerous different arrangements, chord sequences and takes were stripped back to the only two chords that matter, another great vocal performance and a take off at the end.
At the end, you’re left wondering where it all came from. And where you’ve just gone. And where you’re going to now.
One things for sure; everything’s going forward so you may as well face the right direction.