Review: Bo Jo Jones and the Great Lummox - Gods of the Gallows
Bo Jo Jones and the Great Lummox are back with a follow up to their debut single, Back in Time - Gods of the Gallows. The Lo-fi beats duo are once again employing sounds and production to create a cafe beats track seeks to find a shared space between laid back nineties hip hop and straight jazz. On their latest release the duo move to a slightly darker aesthetic. With sharply distorted, oriental influenced notation on strings an unknown narrator asks - Who the hell is Bo Jo Jones?
It pulls listeners into a journey through vocalist - the Great Lummox’s adventures into the shadows into the unknown. His flow is simplistic and hypnotic with the songs crescendo finding him singing with rock tendencies that overflow with passion and then seamlessly drop back to warm mature rapping. His final verse is a beautiful change of pace from the songs start only furthers the appeal journey final destination.
Bo Jo Jones has continued to prove he is a producer to take notice of in the Sydney scene. The instrumentation within this track is extremely well considered and it is really exciting to see such a new act move in such a mature may. Every sound is menacing yet never dissonant. The reverb of the double bass as it marches along with The Great Lummox’s singing, is like a guide through the night and one of the most intoxicating characters in the tale. Simplistic drums serve their purpose of momentum and tension. It is the soft sounds used in the song that really create charisma. Each verse feels like a new scene to explore. The keys are used to pull the listener far from where they started and then drop them safely back to the songs original aesthetic. As the song comes to a close and synth sounds which feel like Roy Ayers and his feroman from everybody loves the sunshine play out, you really feel like you have been transported back to reality by the duo.
Gods of the Gallows is an adventure of a track, through scene after scene of noir and intrigue. It is a really lovely style change from their debut release.
With a name that feels like one of your favourite books as a child and music that is quite ubiquitous, I look forward to a body of work from the act that can be played on a lazy Sunday afternoon whilst I sip on drinks with friends and let the sun engulf me in its grips.
