New Jamiroquai is 'Dynamite'

Jamiroquai's sixth album, Dynamite, has a lot to live up to. After all, not one of their previous releases has reached a spot on the U.K. charts lower than No. 2. Obviously, the Brits have not forgotten about this band. This is despite the fact that American interest in Jamiroquai quickly grew and dissipated in response to the 1996 release of Travelling Without Moving, which featured the MTV-friendly "Virtual Insanity."\nThe band actually hit the ground running with their first few albums, as a key player in Europe's acid jazz scene in the early-90s. As the group began to base its sound more around an electronic, disco/funk beat, it finally conquered the United States. Each album since has better displayed their new direction, as well as their versatility.\nIn Dynamite, the band truly gives its most versatile performance to date. There is a well-balanced mixture of styles throughout the album, which really gives it a nice pulse. Jamiroquai lets it be known that it isn't going to stray from its now-trademark disco beat. Also in the mix are slower guitar and piano-based tracks. Another, "Talullah," hearkens back to the acid jazz sound that popularized the band.\nOne thing missing from Dynamite is Jamiroquai's signature environmentalist lyrics. And while the band seems to be trying a more nihilistic, carefree approach with this album, one song "(Don't) Give Hate a Chance," has an incredibly political edge to it. The song features lyrics like "Don't give this hate a chance/We've got all this love to give, you know/That this dream's alive, will still survive/Until no more people have to cry."\nDynamite begins with the first, and most successful, single from the album thus far, "Feels Just Like It Should." It is a testament to how far the band has come in terms of songwriting. Front man Jay Kay's voice has an unusual coarseness to it, and it rips through the high-powered electric beat and contagious hook. \nJamiroquai slows the pace down at just the right moments to give the listener a breather. "World That He Wants" is mainly comprised of piano and Kay's vocals, and it really cools everything down midway through the album. It also features Kay doing his very best Stevie Wonder impression.\nDynamite was released this June in the U.K., Australia and Japan. It reached No. 3 in the U.K. charts, and was released in the U.S. on September 20. The album is a well-mixed collection of pop hits, and it is by no means transcendent. But it highlights the band's musical literacy and sheer talent as well as any one of its previous records.