Photo Credit: Big Gigantic
Jazzy fresh duo, Big Gigantic released a banger of a follow up album earlier this month following 2010’s “A Place Behind The Moon.” The January 2012 release, “Nocturnal,” is a big step toward the band’s developing maturity and talent, but perhaps not a gigantic one. As its name implies, “Nocturnal” is a darker, dubbier version of the band’s smooth and sunny 2010 release.
Right from the start, Saxophonist/Producer, Dominic Lalli and beat master, Jeremy Salken, jump into “The Uprising,” a gritty hitter that shows off the duo’s ability to really dub it down. The title track is also a dynamic showcase of Lalli’s ability to blend soulful sax, wobbly bass, with a techno infused finish.
All of that is perhaps mute to the real meat of the album. From the gut wrenchingly raw synth sound in the hip-hop inspired “Hopscotch,” to the bounce-heavy “Beginning of The End” and down to “It’s Goin Down.” The latter of this mid-album array of consecutive bass heavy tracks really shows the duo’s longing to bring their live energy through your headphones. High energy, impressive sax solos, heavy synths and a drop that’s to die for.
Salken does get to have a little bit more fun on this album. His beats are a bit more playful and the handful of drum fills he puts together rests on the low ends of each track like an unexpected kiss of variation from the build-up, breakdown, and repeat cycle that has come to define much of the electronic music today. Lalli’s sax riffs, though impressive, sound all too similar to those heard time and time again with a slightly altered bassline of a backbone. For example check out the incredible similarities between “Eyes Closed” from Nocturnal’s B-Side and “High and Rising” from the 2010 record.
Finishing out the album with a soaring melody in “Stronger,” Big Gigantic really does leave you feeling empowered. The throbbing wobble bass and repetitious synth lines have not altered much since the duo formed in 2008. But this 11-track release is a solid effort by a talented group who has been selling out tour dates and is getting ready to gear up for a vicious festival run including stops at Ultra, Bella Music Festival and Wakarusa from lineups that have been announced to date.
Video from Big Gigantic’s New Year’s Eve show in Chicago.
Video Credit: Big Gigantic
It was good to hear them step up the vigor and rawness on this record even if they didn’t sway too much from their original recipe. In order to really give Big Gigantic justice, one must go see one of their live shows. Like most groups in the genre, they have most fun on stage.
You can download Nocturnal from their website. They are also on the last leg of a winter tour that runs through the first weekend in March. Keep it jazzy. Keep it soulful. Keep it real.
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