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With his second album 'Keep It Unreal' Stockport's Mr Scruff was
catapulted from the murky backrooms of Manchester's club scene onto a global
stage, it's eclectic mix of hip-hop, funk, jazz, and everything and anything
else to hand, combined with its refreshing humour quickly turned it into one
of the great leftfield albums of the last decade, so much so even
Madonna was to be found singing it's praises.
Three years and several hundred gigs later, Mr Scruff is finally ready to
drop his third album, 'Trouser Jazz' the album kicks off with the big and
brassy 'Here We Go', the next proper single 'Sweet Smoke' follows, a hefty
slab of dancefloor funk, insistent stabs laid over a funky trumpet refrain,
some stomping house tempo beats and swirling organ keys, it's tailor made
for clubs of a sunnier disposition. The '70s fusion vibe is amplified
on 'Beyond', which features the languid vocals of label mate Seeming To.
Over a running snare and hi-hat singer Seeming purrs - it could be the
opening theme to a Blaxsploitation science fiction film.
'Shrimp', the first single released off the album, is a tasty slice of
jazz-disco over a pulsing disco bass. Scruff lets loose with the funkiest
Moog workout you'll hear this year, like Herbie Hancock getting busy
in the studio with Chic. The tempo and my interest drops with the
dull 'Come Alive', though. It's not that its scatty vocals and parping bass line
are that bad, but I could reach into my record collection and dig out a
hundred similar songs.
Vocalist Seeming returns on 'Valley of the Sausages' to hum, mumble and
moan over Sneaky from Fingathing's bass and cello, and Moss' flute. A
little Jazz Club in places, its virtue of not taking itself seriously
keeps it from descending into self-parody. Whether 'Come on
Grandad' will succeed in persuading an army of octogenarians to reach for
their jazz trousers and break out some moves on the dancefloor remains to
be seen, but its bouncy, broken beats should at least find favour with those
still in possession of their own hair and teeth.
The quirk factor is upped on 'Vibrate', featuring the home-grown rap
talent of Braintax, a chugging hip-hop tune seemingly built from the
remains of an German oom-pah band. Album closer 'Ahoy There!' is a shuffling sea
shanty overlaid with maritime TV soundbites. Depending on your views on this
sort of thing it's either a joke too far or just what you've been waiting
the whole album for.
All in all, it's a solid album, not as likely to inspire devotion as his
last one managed, but still with enough quality moments to definitely make
it a worthwhile purchase. Maybe next time just a little less jazz and a bit
more trouser please.
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