Paul Haig

The Wood

Les Disque du Crepuscule

IN a far from scientific experiment, I have played the new album by former frontman of Postcard Records' seminal Edinburgh band Josef K to different generations of discerning listeners and can report that it went down a treat with people who were not around to hear that band during its brief flowering.

Since then, Haig has produced shiny pop funk and ambient soundtracks for notional films amongst other projects, often for his own Rhythm of Life imprint, but it seems appropriate that he has returned to the resurgent Les Disque du Crepuscule label – which hosted his first solo excursions – for this set of nine tracks, his first release since 2013’s Kube.

Whether you want to hear a contemporary synth dance vibe or some guitar redolent of his 1980s band, The Wood will fulfil those needs, but there is nothing retro at all about the unique sound-world it creates. Undoubtedly some of it is sampled from other sources, and Haig’s own voice is scarce, but I’m prepared to bet that more of it is actually played with his own fair hands than might at first appear to be case. There are some female vocals, a little bit of James Chance-like sax and some highly irresistible beats, as well as fretwork that is undoubtedly the distinctive sound of the man himself.

It won’t be long before clever DJs from Ibiza to Miami are dropping portions of Sun Flicker, Acoustic Mangles or Floaty Appy into their sets, I’ll wager. Younger generations please report back.

Keith Bruce