Playing Robots Into Heaven - James Blake: Review
James Blake
is a British electronic musician who has spent a decade transitioning from fragmented experimental electronica and dubstep into more heartfelt balladry. Despite that he never lost his edge with critics and promised fans ahead of the album's release that Playing Robots Into Heaven would see him transitioning back into a style that fused his more experimental and dance-influenced electronic with his new sound.
Review by Lav:
So say I'm a big James Blake fan would be a severe understatement, I'm basically a die-hard. When I was first getting into music Blake was one of the first artists whose music blew me away to much that I immediately dove into every single song he's ever made, which wasn't that much at the time. He's continued to astound me throughout his career with each of his 5 albums sounding not only distinct but fantastic throughout. That's why I had no reason to expect that Playing Robots Into Heaven would be any different and for the most part it reaches that mark.
I was, and in some sense still am a little bit skeptical of the album's lead single Big Hammer. The song didn't blow me away at first like I kind of expected it to but you could say it grew on me. It's unique in an entirely different way than James normally is but I think the stiff beat and vocal samples eventually come together in an interesting way even if they get off to a slow start.
That sort of contrast pops up a few times on deep cuts I'm just okay on. Fall Back has some percussion that I like a lot but after a few minutes it starts to feel very aimless. I have the opposite problem with I Want You To Know which has a wonderful arrangement of vocals and synths that go in creative directions with their sonic manipulations. The beat underneath doesn't do much for me and I think it kinda holds the song back.
Thankfully, pretty much everything else on the album is great. Asking To Break is a relatively simple opener but one that is soaked in great sonic textures and a variety of impressive vocals. Speaking of impressive vocals and textures, the second single Loading is flat-out incredible. I've been obsessed with the song since it first dropped as a single mostly for the heart-rearing vocals that remind me of Blake's incredible previous album Friends That Break Your Heart. It combines this with some vocal manipulations and subtle electronic soundplay that remind me of his early work. The combo is absolutely perfect and gets the record off to a great start.
Tell Me was a late single that I've also enjoyed quite a bit. I love how spacious the mix is and it has this fantastic contrast between the grinding electronics and Blake's sweet vocals on the hook. He's Been Wonderful keeps the strong momentum up with some angelic soundplay and creative sampling. Big Hammer and I Want You To Know comes up next on the album but after that song the entire project shifts to something darker, colder, and more sparse.
Night Sky comes first and sees the record getting about as darkly reserved as it gets. In particular, the second half is a really strong emotional moment on the album and the whole song works as a great transition into the distinctly different second half. Because of the presentation on this album the lyrical content isn't allowed to get quite as detailed as on Friends but that doesn't mean there aren't thematic highlights. Fire The Editor is a fantastic moment with Blake's somehow still threatening performance serving as the icing on the cake of the song's incredible vocal performance and manipulations.
The great run of lyrical highlights continues onto If You Can Hear Me. It's such a chilling moment on the album with this frigid isolated piano and incredible contrast in the vocals. The point where the clear cascading vocal harmonies emerge from the distant quieter refrains is one of the best individual moments on the entire album. The closing track Playing Robots Into Heaven keeps the strong streak going. It's a wonderful instrumental finale to the entire project playing out this absolutely chilling piano riff into a deeply isolating conclusion.
Playing Robots Into Heaven may not be James Blake's definitive masterpiece, but with the artistic variety he has in spades, it would be hard to imagine him ever encapsulating all of that anyway. This song is a VERY distinctive shift from his last project, leaning into some of its coldest moments and turning those into a concept. What his work loses in the emotional vulnerability he displayed on Friends, it gains in an experimental, chilling, and confrontationally isolated new sonic palette. It really does bring together elements of Blake's early career ambition with his later self-reflection into another collection of songs that stand completely alone in his discography and add up to something greater than the sum of its parts. 8/10
For more electronica check out my review of Yaeji's With A Hammer
