(F-Com/Creative Vibes)

Aqua Bassino’s music comes from the downbeat end of the house music spectrum. A purveyor of deep and jazzy soulful house music, producer Jason Robertson was signed to illustrious French label F Communications back in 1996. Rue de Paris is his second album, a follow-up to a string of EP releases and 2002’s Beats n’ Bobs album. It also follows a tough period of time in his life. Not only did a burst water main and collapsed ceiling lead to the loss of his vinyl collection and his ability to DJ, but an unexpected tax bill resulted in a spiral of debt and the impoundment of computers and keyboards.

Jason’s hardships can be seen in the melancholic blues strain that runs throughout much of Rue de Paris. Many of his tracks are quite downbeat and subdued, the beats slowly measured, piano, strings, occasionally a saxophone. Interwoven with these tracks are move uptempo numbers, in a more straight up deep house style, such as on We Could Be Friends and Think It Iz Real, or the Latin influenced Espirito de Amor.

On these more uptempo tracks, Jason has employed the talents of a number of guest vocalists: Sanda N’Kake, Stacy Smith, Carolina Sampaio and Lady Bird. Meanwhile, on the remaining tracks, apart from the instrumental title track, Jason has used his own vocals. His voice is very deep and quite unusual, the closest comparison I can make is Barry White’s soulful singing.

Unfortunately, while many of the individual tracks on Rue de Paris are wonderful (stand outs for me are the elegant Rue de Paris and the restrained Latin beats of Espirito de Amor), the division between uptempo and downbeat tracks on the album is its undoing. There is a lack of cohesiveness on it, and the album fails to rise above being an average release. Despite this, the album still makes for an ideal choice on the sound system of a café or downtempo lounge.