"Finishing this record has been about trying to find new approaches of pushing the Jacques Greene sound forward, but I also wanted to do something that was almost like a culmination of all these previous records too," says Jacques Greene, in a recent interview with Exclaim!.
Listening to his debut full-length, Feel Infinite, it's easy to hear that Greene (born Philippe Aubin-Dionne) has succeeded in his goals. The record is a fine example of someone honing their craft without abandoning their sound. Like his previous releases, it's dripping with the kind of nostalgic melodies that immediately take you back to a certain place or an encounter you may have had. That might sound corny to some, but there's a big difference between mawkishness and emotional depth, and Greene falls firmly in the latter category.
Feel Infinite manages to do an even better job of conjuring a response than EPs like The Look and On Your Side, probably due to the various upheavals that Greene experienced while making the LP. In a relatively short period of time, he emigrated to another country, parted ways with a best friend and fell in love with a girl. All of this points to a certain tension and release that you can hear throughout the record, particularly in tracks like "You Can't Deny" and "Afterglow," his superb single from last year.
Another aspect that Greene has almost amplified rather than shying away from is the delicate vocal samples that are rampant throughout his back catalogue. When you become known for a certain trait, the question of whether or not you should ditch it inevitably arises, but as far as Greene is concerned, you need to own it. Aside from doubling down on those vocal cuts, he's also somehow managed to use them to even greater effect here. The vocals on "Real Time," for example, are just as percussive as the beat itself, while their appearance on "To Say" coaxes that chunky bass line along with its come hither breathiness.
All in all, Feel Infinite is vintage Jacques Greene, but you're never left feeling like you've heard it all before. As he puts it himself, "If you didn't like it three records ago, you probably won't like this album. And I'd like to think that if you liked my records three years ago, you'll like this finely tuned, slightly matured, well-rounded 45-minute album-world version of it now. So, this is me sticking to my guns in a way that I'm really happy about."
(LuckyMe / Arts & Crafts)Listening to his debut full-length, Feel Infinite, it's easy to hear that Greene (born Philippe Aubin-Dionne) has succeeded in his goals. The record is a fine example of someone honing their craft without abandoning their sound. Like his previous releases, it's dripping with the kind of nostalgic melodies that immediately take you back to a certain place or an encounter you may have had. That might sound corny to some, but there's a big difference between mawkishness and emotional depth, and Greene falls firmly in the latter category.
Feel Infinite manages to do an even better job of conjuring a response than EPs like The Look and On Your Side, probably due to the various upheavals that Greene experienced while making the LP. In a relatively short period of time, he emigrated to another country, parted ways with a best friend and fell in love with a girl. All of this points to a certain tension and release that you can hear throughout the record, particularly in tracks like "You Can't Deny" and "Afterglow," his superb single from last year.
Another aspect that Greene has almost amplified rather than shying away from is the delicate vocal samples that are rampant throughout his back catalogue. When you become known for a certain trait, the question of whether or not you should ditch it inevitably arises, but as far as Greene is concerned, you need to own it. Aside from doubling down on those vocal cuts, he's also somehow managed to use them to even greater effect here. The vocals on "Real Time," for example, are just as percussive as the beat itself, while their appearance on "To Say" coaxes that chunky bass line along with its come hither breathiness.
All in all, Feel Infinite is vintage Jacques Greene, but you're never left feeling like you've heard it all before. As he puts it himself, "If you didn't like it three records ago, you probably won't like this album. And I'd like to think that if you liked my records three years ago, you'll like this finely tuned, slightly matured, well-rounded 45-minute album-world version of it now. So, this is me sticking to my guns in a way that I'm really happy about."
