The new album will be released this Friday March 31.On another site,I was able to hear brief clips from all the songs and I am ecstatic I think "Summer Girl" is gonna be my summer jam,lol

Jamiroquai performing "Cloud 9" on The Voice UK

hear clips of the songs on the album and Jay talking about each song

[Edited 3/26/17 21:51pm]

Record Store Day item: "Automaton" vinyl single on clear vinyl and containing the B-side "Nights Out In The Jungle"

MUSIC > ALBUM REVIEW

Jamiroquai | Automaton Review
TheMusic.com.au | By Natasha Pinto
3 1/2 out of 5 stars

Taking a heavily electronic route, acid-jazz/funk veterans Jamiroquai have managed to keep most elements of their signature sound intact.

True to form, there's some tasty ad-libbing and driving bass lines that'll drag you deep down into the groove. Vitamin is instantly gripping and the title track, featuring lyrics referencing the moon and "metal eyes", set the tone for the futuristic feel of the album. It's a glitchy treat, with melodically interesting verses that outdo the chorus. Some outros, especially prominent on Dr Buzz, boast a climactic jumble of ascending synths, hi-hat-heavy drum breaks and even some sultry sax solos for good measure.

There are a few tracks that do initially come across as confusing, taking abrupt winding chord progressions that swerve off into unexpected directions. Jittery synths and vocoders colour the majority of this release, which can feel overwhelming at times, especially when most songs step over the four-minute mark into extended electro jams.

A different piece from their first few potently acid jazz-infused releases, some old school fans may find this offering less instantly moving; but, after a few listens, Jamiroquai's iconic licks and vocals really do suck you in. Cloud 9 is definitely a track for those apprehensive listeners who crave that nostalgic Jamiroquai fix. Automaton is a creative release, which, for the most part, maintains Jamiroquai's familiar sound.

Q Magazine review

"Automaton" official music video

"Cloud 9" official music video

I'll put it on the list. I've been underwhelmed by The J's recent output but I'll give it a whirl.

love the singles, lookig forward to the album a lot!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b08k1grd#play

new track Superfresh played on bbc, funky n futuristic , full of unexpected twists

I want you to rock with me,baby....rock me baby all night long

"SuperFresh"

"It's a complete album," says Jay Kay with a glint in his eye and the slyest of grins. "It's a proper, finished album. The rule was all killer no filler. There were great tracks that we left off because they weren't quite great enough. We knew we had to get it right with this one. And if you don't get it right and don't make an album that's cohesive, that you dig, where the rhythms are right, the melodies are right, that just feels good and feels cool, then you know, what's the point of doing it? It's as simple as that."

I knew I wanted to write and produce it with Matt Johnson our keyboard player. Matt's who I work best with. He gets it. He gets where I'm coming from. I said to him: It's time for us to do this and get it right. And everybody who's heard it thinks it's really fresh and sounds like us but moved forward."

in addition to the CD,I also pre-ordered the vinyl,which looks fantastic! It's a 2-LP set,with a gatefold....

SoulAlive said:

hear clips of the songs on the album and Jay talking about each song

[Edited 3/26/17 21:51pm]

Wow Soul, you are super excited aren't you? LOL!!!

The two tracks that stood out for me are "Hot Property" and "Nights in the Jungle". Some of the tracks sounded a little blah...but of course, can't really go by a snippet of a song. I'm willing to hear the whole thing before making a real assessment.

Leaves me cold.

I'm looking forward to this one as well. My favorite Jamiroquai album is still A Funk Odyssey, but I really liked Rock Dust Light Star a lot, too. The remasted/deluxe editions of their first three albums are worth the money, too.

Just wish it didnt require a 4-6 year wait between albums for these guys. They have a great material but just seem to move slower than the average pace of output.

missfee said:

Wow Soul, you are super excited aren't you? LOL!!!

yes,indeed! I've been starving for some new Jamiroquai music.

Doozer said:

I'm looking forward to this one as well. My favorite Jamiroquai album is still A Funk Odyssey, but I really liked Rock Dust Light Star a lot, too. The remasted/deluxe editions of their first three albums are worth the money, too.

Just wish it didnt require a 4-6 year wait between albums for these guys. They have a great material but just seem to move slower than the average pace of output.

A Funk Odyssey is my favorite Jamiroquai album,too.I also wish they would release music more frequently.The 4-6 year wait drives me crazy! lol

missfee said:

The two tracks that stood out for me are "Hot Property" and "Nights in the Jungle". Some of the tracks sounded a little blah...but of course, can't really go by a snippet of a song. I'm willing to hear the whole thing before making a real assessment.

"We Can Do It" premiered on an European radio station today and I think that's got to be one of the weaker tracks.

Jamiroquai performing "Dr.Buzz" last night in Paris

Dewood on Periscope: "#ja...llepleyel"

JAMIROQUAI – AUTOMATON (ALBUM REVIEW)

The future is made of virtual insanity and Jamiroquai are back after seven long years, so break out your funky hats, folks! Automaton arrives March 31, 2017 via Virgin/EMI Records.

Reportedly formed by Vocalist Jason “Jay” Kay – he of all those fun hats – after a failed audition with the Brand New Heavies, Jamiroquai set down their roots in 1992 in London, England. A Funk and Acid Jazz group – who would become part of this new Acid Jazz movement in the UK – Jamiroquai would get their official start when, also in 1992, founding member Kay signed an eight-album deal with Sony Music Entertainment.

This was followed within a year with the group’s first major label release, Emergency on Planet Earth. A year later, they would release their sophomore album, The Return of the Space Cowboy. Touring and airplay throughout the UK would build a strong fanbase for the group at home, as well as throughout Western Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan. Unfortunately, until the release of their junior disc, 1996’s Travelling Without Moving, the group were virtually unknown in the United States.

Travelling Without Moving hit with a bang in the U.S. and Jamiroquai became best-known for their 1997 hit single/video, “Virtual Insanity.” You remember the video, right? The floors and furniture were moving, there was mirror play, a raven, and Kay was getting his dance groove on throughout the entire ordeal. Yes, there was even a silly hat! Together, the song and video – which was directed by Jonathan Glazer (Radiohead, Massive Attack) – mopped floors at the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards and went on to win a Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with vocals.

They followed this success with 1998’s Synkronized. With 2001’s A Funk Odyssey, however, the group would begin to establish a whole new sound; with lineup changes and inspirational shifts, their fifth studio album would be their biggest departure yet. Fortunately, it worked and the album’s first single, “Little L,” reached No. 1 on multiple charts worldwide, becoming the group’s biggest Dance hit. Sixth album, Dynamite, would repeat this success and reach No. 3 on the UK charts.

By November 2006, Jamiroquai would release a greatest hits collection, High Times: Singles 1992–2006, and their deal with Sony would come to a close. Four years later, in November 2010, the group’s long-awaited, seventh studio album, Rock Dust Light Star, would arrive, and then it would be seven long years before the band returned to the studio.

Behold, the eighth wonder of Jamiroquai’s world, Automaton, which arrives on Friday, March 31, 2017 on Virgin/EMI Records. Produced by Kay and Keyboardist Matt Johnson – who also wrote the majority of the album’s songs together – Automaton is a twelve-song exploration of similar, repeat themes from throughout the band’s career. Always intrigued with Science Fiction and the future, Jamiroquai – whose current lineup is composed around Kay, Drummer Derrick McKenzie, and Percussionist Sola Akingbola, all of whom have been with the group for over twenty years – turn toward the robotic on their eighth studio release.

Automaton begins with “Shake It On,” a stellar presentation that blends Kay’s signature vocals with a Daft Punk-esque beat that evolves into something that is Disco meets Electronic Pop. It is funkaliciousness in delicious digital: think Donna Summer meets Daft Punk on a Saturday night fever trip. There is an underlying ’80s influence at work on “Automaton,” an experimental mix of New Wave synths and EDM, all wrapped up in that trademark Jamiroquai funk. That is, until the chorus kicks in and Kay begins to sing, ironically, about having faith in a digital world and, perhaps unintentionally, name-checks Billy Idol’s “Eyes Without A Face.”

Truth be told, “Automaton” is all over the place, genre-bending and bastardizing all categorizations: this is a song that takes bits and pieces of all things fabulous, tosses them into a blender and spits out something that defies words and sonic logic. You will either love it or hate it, but definitely check out the video where Kay dons a Sonic the Hedgehog-like new hat.

Second single/video “Cloud 9” perfectly presents the ’70s Funk-flavored Jamiroquai that we all know and love, no shock, no awe: just Funk, Jazz and Pop. Walking on that mythical high, Kay sings of leaving behind a game-playing ex for a life that has never been better. For its part, “Superfresh” cycles back to the electronic experimentation with bass grooves weighted in Funk, vocal Disco vibes, and EDM elementals throughout.

If it is possible to sound cinematic, Jamiroquai does it superbly here. Kay then launches into the Funktastic dance-a-thon that is “Hot Property,” the funkadelica of “Something About You,” and the luxe summer rendezvous – complete with limoncellos, baby! – that is “Summer Girl.” Not one to be tied down to any particular sonic stylings, Kay goes on to experiment with Rap verses in “Nights Out In The Jungle.” There is a fun breakdown at the end that simulates a jungle, complete with crazy monkey sounds.

“Oooo, help me, Dr. Buzz. I’m gonna mend the world tonight, ’til it’s shining bright,” Kay croons in another funkalicious offering full of fat bass-lines and superb synths. It moves flawlessly into “We Can Do It,” classic Jamiroquai and worthy of the next James Bond soundtrack. “Vitamin” is a healthy return to the style of mega-hit “Virtual Insanity,” while album closer, “Carla,” appears to be a Dance/Funk tribute to someone’s daughter. Inquiring minds wish to know: does this kid have an entertaining hat, too?

The sounds of Automaton are full of exceptional musicianship, intense layering, and sonic genre-crossing galore. The album’s title is perfectly reflective of its sound: EDM robotics float throughout but never weigh down the band’s original blend of Funk, Acid Jazz, Electronica, and Pop, the ’70s kissing 2017 amorously.

While Jamiroquai do tend to create an overflowing, sonic gumbo, it somehow works: their sound is uniquely modern with a flagrant homage to a groovy past. Automaton is no different and while it starts off with an explosive bang, there are some moments that lack lustre; yet it is, over all, another resplendent offering from a superbly unique band. For these and so many more reasons, CrypticRock gives Jamiroquai’s Automaton 4.5 of 5 stars.

Quality Jamiroquai = 1993 - 1997

MD431Madcat said:

The first (3) albums said everything that im interested in hearing from Jay Kay!

Doozer said:

MD431Madcat said:

Quality Jamiroquai = 1993 - 1997

I wouldn@t argue that but still would put A Funk Odyssey among their best work. Dynamite was vanilla and dull; Rock Dust Light Star has some really high points. Can't argue that their first 3 albums were excellent.

MD431Madcat said:

The first (3) albums said everything that im interested in hearing from Jay Kay!

Doozer said:

MD431Madcat said: I wouldn@t argue that but still would put A Funk Odyssey among their best work. Dynamite was vanilla and dull; Rock Dust Light Star has some really high points. Can't argue that their first 3 albums were excellent.

You must be a Stuart Zender-era J fan (like me).

But I dunno . . . I could put together a decent list of quality songs post-TWM, including:

"Canned Heat"
"Butterfly"
"Little L"
"Main Vein"
"Seven Days In Sunny June"
"Smile"

I'll still at least sample the new album.

[Edited 3/29/17 11:26am]

not surprisingly,the album has leaked.I'm gonna be a good boy and wait until Friday to listen to my official copy

namepeace said:

MD431Madcat said:

The first (3) albums said everything that im interested in hearing from Jay Kay!

You must be a Stuart Zender-era J fan (like me).

But I dunno . . . I could put together a decent list of quality songs post-TWM, including:

"Canned Heat"
"Butterfly"
"Little L"
"Main Vein"
"Seven Days In Sunny June"
"Smile"

I'll still at least sample the new album.

[Edited 3/29/17 11:26am]

I would add:

Corner of the Earth

Love Foolosophy

Stop Don't Panic

Twenty Zero One

Hot Tequila Brown

Smoke and Mirrors

Hurtin'

She's a Fast Persuader

Yes pretty good, I do like some Jamiroquai. All these old groups making comebacks with great new material, there is hope after all.

Stuart and Toby!

things were Never the same after they split.

to me

they turned into a 4 on the floor disco/house ish type of funky ish group..

like funk by numbers.. or trying to be 'obviously' funky ish..

in the GOLDEN ERA

Toby co-wrote everything with jay and his Rhodes piano was THE sound of the group.

ADD Badass Stu on Bass and Derrick on drums. = very Classic!

Doozer said:

namepeace said:

You must be a Stuart Zender-era J fan (like me).

But I dunno . . . I could put together a decent list of quality songs post-TWM, including:

"Canned Heat"
"Butterfly"
"Little L"
"Main Vein"
"Seven Days In Sunny June"
"Smile"

I'll still at least sample the new album.

[Edited 3/29/17 11:26am]

I would add:

Corner of the Earth

Love Foolosophy

Stop Don't Panic

Twenty Zero One

Hot Tequila Brown

Smoke and Mirrors

Hurtin'

She's a Fast Persuader

[Edited 3/29/17 19:29pm]

[Edited 3/29/17 19:47pm]