Opening with gentle washes of psychedelic vocals and an intricate acoustic guitar motif before giving way to an expansive, surprising sound pallet, Get Away is the latest single from South-East London’s Jim Jam (AKA James Newman). It’s an interesting listen – and a timely one, given how 2020 has unfolded so far – capturing the longing to get back to music, and to enjoy the freedom of art in an age where work dominates everything. Coming in at under three-and-a-half minutes, Newman has somehow managed to pull off the feat of creating something that feels as though time has slowed down. That’s not me trying to say that listening to Get Away feels like a drag though. Far from it, what I’m actually saying is that it’s a track that pulls you in and messes with your cerebellum.

Though influenced by classic songwriters such as Bert Jansch and Neil Young, the things that really stand out here are the arrangement and production choices which really transform what could otherwise be a straightforward, conventional track into something far more interesting. The track is built around a beautiful, delicately played acoustic guitar motif – which cycles round and round throughout – but orbiting this float looser elements. Subtle synths creep out of the shadows, along with clean electric guitar lines, chimes, reversed samples, and a slow-moving drum loop which keeps the whole thing rooted. The overall effect is not too dissimilar from the image on the cover (which might be a nod to Neil Young’s masterpiece On The Beach, but I could be wrong) where all of the embellishments are blowing about in the wind like a parasol threatening to take off, but that insistent snare is holding everything down like a deadweight.

More low-key as opposed to lo-fi, Get Away reminds me of the kind of material Beck was making with Nigel Godrich (on Mutations and The Information specifically). There’s a real slow-burn quality to the track that seems to claw its way into your brain and stay there. From the first listen, I was drawn in by the guitar and the almost glacial pace, but subsequently I’ve found myself focusing more on the tiny details in the mix. These details are the result of months spent working in the studio with producer and engineer Jay Malhotra, fleshing out initial straight-up acoustic takes and pushing them into more ambient, experimental places. The result is captivating, and there are more interesting ideas running through Get Away than some artists display across an entire LP. I like it a lot, and with more new music on the horizon, it’ll be interesting to see where Jim Jam goes next.

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You can find Jim Jam on Instagram and SoundCloud.

* This track was discovered via Musosoup. A small fee was paid in exchange for publication. See ‘About / Contact’ page for more details.