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James Blake teams up with former Roll Deep member Trim
Wednesday 26th September 2012 | David
Dubstep minimalist James Blake has teamed up with grime artist Trim for a new release, but this time in a production role.
Back before James Blake released his soulfully haunting self-titled debut album last year, he experimented and reworked the songs of others under the producer name Harmonix. Replacing the original beats with sharp electronic tones and swelling organs, his work as Harmonix was the beginnings of what is now Blake’s bare-bones approach to his own music.
Now returning to a producer’s role, Blake has brought his exposed style to unfamiliar territory by reworking ‘Confidence Boost’ by former Roll Deep member Trim. You would think that Trim’s raw grime style wouldn’t mix with the quietly constructed work of Blake, yet the new release is both calm and confrontational, a strange yet effective mix.
The video features both artists, with Trim’s voice being constantly distorted by Blake’s changes in pitch. The minimal backing track is less important than Trim’s repetitive, almost hypnotic vocal. However, Blake’s presence can occasionally be felt, with his backing distortion crashing into perfect melody before once again fading away into almost nothing.
James Blake will tour the UK in December, with dates in Bristol on the 3rd, London on the 4th and Manchester on the 6th before playing a one off show in New York the following week.
Listen to Trimbal’s (as the pair like to be called) track ‘Confidence Boost’ below.
By David Pratt
