(Beat Service/Creative Vibes)

Fenomenon burst onto the nu-jazz scene around 2000 and released a couple of very well received 12” on the now defunct Nuphonic label. With only a handful of EP releases before the folding of that partocular label, there was a lot of material being prepared for their debut album that never saw the light of day.

Norwegian duo Kjetil Ingebretsen and Havard Rosenberg signed their Fenomenon sound to Beatservice Records in 2004 and knocked out two albums, the Hourglass release that was a kind of nu-jazz meets 80’s aesthetics, before they released the funk/soul album In Stereo in 2005. Both albums were well received around the globe.

Their latest release Pacific Memories: The Early Tapes is not so much new material as it is a collection of their 12”s. With a Café Del Mar/Ibiza appeal to it, the vocals are effortless, the synths warm and tasty, the keys subtle and melodic. When listening to this album, think of it in its history. The majority of the tracks on this release were written 4 to 5 years ago for another label yet it still remains timeless in its sound.

Production is slick and the sound is crisp. Get the treble and the bass up for this to hear the acoustic guitar licks and Kjetil’s smooth male vocals (and guest vocals from Hilde Drange from Slowpho). Upbeat at times with broken beat and at other times laidback beach tunes. Like a block of smooth, rich, dairy milk chocolate, it’s a release for everyone to enjoy…

Tracklisting:
1 Pacific Memories (6:47)
2 Out Of Control (3:47)
3 Solara (6:34)
4 Romeo Avenue (7:02)
5 Color Conscience (3:40)
6 By Pearls & Gold (4:42)
7 Picturebook (7:17)
8 Even Stranger (4:33)
9 Awake (5:36)
10 Clayton Ravine (5:15)
11 Lost (4:20)
12 Back At Dawn (6:28)