Jamiroquai includes: Jay Kay (vocals); Simon Katz, Irwin Kelles (guitar); Wallis Buchanan (digeridoo); Toby Smith (keyboards); Nick Fyffe (bass); Derrick McKenzie (drums); Sola Akingbola (percussion); Katie Kissoon, Beverley Skeet (background vocals).
Recorded at Chillington Studio, Buckinghamshire, England.
On their fourth record, Jamiroquai continue their quest to drag dance music into the new millennium with a sound that fuses influences from the past with an international spin. This time around, Jamiroquai uses the string-heavy Gamble & Huff arrangements of classic '70s Philly soul as its musical touchstone. Songs such as "Canned Heat" and "Butterfly" establish a mood that moves from booty-shaking grooves to hypnotic head-bobbing thanks to generous dollops of fuzz bass, darting strings and propulsive percussion.
Even though frontman Jay Kay's vocals are a little too reminiscent of Stevie Wonder's upper register, the addition of wicked Clavinet and wah-wah guitar point the musical vibe more towards Curtis Mayfield and Isaac Hayes, particularly on the blaxploitative funk of "Soul Education" and "Black Capricorn Day." "Supersonic" is a multi-cultural smorgasbord that finds Jamiroquai crossing Latin-flavored percussion with the otherworldly sounds of the Australian didgeridoo. The result is an aural playground of bouncing rhythms and electronic effects.
What the critics say...
Rolling Stone (7/8-22, pp.144-145) - 3 Stars (out of 5) - "...SYNKRONIZED is fifty minutes of sleek, sexy fun, a party album delviered with something like conviction. It's not exactly irresistible, but, really, what's the point of resisting it?"
Spin (8/99, p.154) - 6 (out of 10) - "...redirects the band's British tendency toward smoothed-out old black jams....soaring strings, gyrating congas, hell-bent wah-wah's, and an undeniably live rhythm section that'll hustle your muscles and make you freak to the beat..."
Entertainment Weekly (6/11/99, pp.63-4) - "...Imagine if [Stevie Wonder] had made a disco album in 1977!....SYNKRONIZED is a hat trick done with the sharpest chapeau in the store..." - Rating: B-
Q (1/00, p.85) - Included in Q Magazine's "50 Best Albums of 1999."
Q (7/99, pp.102-3) - 4 stars (out of 5) - "...[consolidates] the group's irrepressibly catchy old-skool funk with something darker and stranger....the most obtuse and best things the band have put down..."
CMJ (6/7/99, p.5) - "...This incessantly upbeat expedition travels into the regions of Travolta-era disco...feverish funk...and instrumental iridescence...keeping your ears tuned to their funktastic audio adventures..."
Mojo (Publisher) (7/99, p.100) - "...SYNKRONIZED proves Jamiroquai...are capable of knocking up fluid and thrilling grooves at the drop of an enormous hat....Jay's voice is wonderful throughout, delivering his admittedly toe-curling lyrics with...conviction."
