The second Gold Panda album is a worthy companion to the well-received first, Lucky Shiner. It is a warmer, more personal utterance, beautifully shaded and thoughtfully written. It has a warm ambience running through from start to finish, though the choices of beats and rhythms vary considerably from the chunky deep house of ‘We Work Nights’ to the self-assembled ‘Junk City II’, where it feels like you the listener are in a musical workshop with Gold Panda himself. There is music of real charm here, too, in the soft mallet sounds of ‘S950’ and the Steve Reich-influenced ‘My Father In Hong Kong 1961’. Meanwhile ‘Brazil’ blends in what seems to be field recordings of samba in the streets to make a backdrop that talks of walking down a street not far from a busy carnival. This use of foreground and background makes for a fascinating record, one that builds on the first with both tenderness and flair.
5 out of 5
Reviewed By Ben Hogwood
