“Simple songs are the hardest to write” says Jamie T from his South-West London home, demonstrating the cool wisdom of a songwriter who understands that, as he puts it, “it’s the vibe that counts, not the talent.”
NME said, “Britain, you’re honoured to have him”. Well now we’ve got him, dear Americans: Jamie T, the rollicking gent from Wimbledon, who’s been rambling and widening eyes across the musical landscape, armed only with a sense of adventure and an acoustic bass. His lyrically dense yet lucid, ramshackle story-songs run a freewheeling topical gamut, from gals frolicking about seeking “money, money, money” to nights spent getting smashed, only to later muse on the merriment all the way back in time to wars our grandfathers fought in.
Jamie T’s words and arrangements are quite adept to remind the listener of great forbearers, even sometimes unknowingly. In sly homage to Woody Guthrie, Jamie even labeled his own acoustic guitar with the legend “This Guitar Was Killed by a Fascist” after his girlfriend busted it…ah, young love. Jamie often recalls the mercurial, younger Dylan, “funky shit” like Beastie Boys, The Clash, The Specials and the one with whom Jamie’s gone “Back to Basics” analogously: Billy Bragg. In this case, with an artist much more than the sum of his idols, the comparisons will come but won’t suffice.
Panic Prevention, is Jamie T’s all thriller, no filler debut album. It’s ripe with drum ‘n bass, rock’ n roll, and most swaggeringly-certain, rude boy-style quakes and classic syncopation. Panic prompts images of traversing the steaming, shining, pre-dawn streets of Jamie T’s hometown, headphones pumping beats, with every friend in tow.
As a self-taught and self-produced troubadour who began playing music at the age of 11, fans far-off now know him well. Word of his unfettered mashing together of myriad sounds spread when Jamie self-released ‘Salvador’ on his Pacemaker imprint. He was eventually asked to do a remix of “Kids with Guns” from Gorillaz’ Demon Days at the request of Damon Albarn, which he was pleased to deliver. Jamie subsequently signed to the band's label, Virgin, and was named Best Solo Artist at the 2007 NME Awards.
Previously, Jamie produced a steady stream of mix tapes that were handed out at local gigs under the aforementioned Panic Prevention name. “I had loads of panic attacks when I was younger and my mom gave me these “relax” CDs, which I thought were a load of shit”. But of course, in his ever-innovative fashion, Jamie began sampling some of the tracks for those tapes, and later in recording his full-length.
Recorded between his bedroom and a small studio located in London’s Elephant & Castle neighborhood, the bleeps, pulses and acoustic-bass hammerings on Panic are indicative of charming kitchen / bathroom / bedroom cuts also mixed with expansive backdrops in the vein of Phil Spector. An implacable equation: “big but not at all over the top” as Jamie described the more simplified and organic programmes and arrangements—which all allow this record to meld distinguishingly into the musical plain that spans from Los Angeles to London, and began before anyone can recall.
Seems that in the ever-muddying waters of American indie rock, we need this bang-bang young ‘un. One might ask if America is ready for this new, bold, and rock-steady voice. No matter, he’s already here—and we’re reelin’ him in like mad.
