Following on from last week’s article on Yussef Dayes we thought it’d be interesting to dive deeper into his recent collaborations with London guitarist and producer Tom Misch.
Their recent debut release as a duo What Kinda Music marks a new chapter in the music of both the artists. For Tom the album really displays his talents as a diverse songwriter. Moving away from his 2018 debut Geography’s self produced “bedroom” style into a more studio setting, What Kinda Music has a much darker “cosmic” style with stacks of backing vocals drowned in reverb throughout the album. For Dayes the album marks his first release since splitting from duo Yussef Kamaal. Dayes’ fast staccato drum parts are full of hollow clicks and pops reminiscent of atmospheric drum and bass cuts through the otherwise dense soundscape in a way which is very pleasing to the ears.
Recently the duo have appeared on NPR’s Tiny Desk at Home series performing the first two songs off the album spread across 6 musicians’ homes. The performance features a guest appearance from american singer-songwriter and guitarist John Mayer who plays a guitar solo on the end of the first song Nightrider amongst many other musicians who provide backing for the duo.
You can listen to What Kinda Music here and watch the NPR concert below: