Jamiroquai – Synkronized

Great sounding pressing, bass is tight and deep as well with the other instruments, clean and dynamic. Same thing with all Jamiroquai 90s vinyl pressing, worth to buy. Highly recommended 90s classics!

I can’t where I got this of when, but in early 00s I reckon. It’s a move away from the band sound and the production is more electronic in parts and it firmly stands on the dance floor. It sounds awesome, and more natural than the CD.
There’s a little filler here I feel with Destitute Illusions and the techno repetition of Supersonic. It’s a pity Deeper Underground wasn’t part of the original track listing.
It’s a bonus in CD and on the vinyl repress.
Grab this copy if you can, the bass is awesome. The sleeve is pretty drab I must add, the card looks lifeless.
Standouts are disco boogie belter Canned Heat with excellent bassline and perfect 70s strings. Planet Home is another fast funk and soul inspired belter. Black Capricorn day is funk from the street James Brown style.
Soul Education takes us back to the dance floor while Falling cools us down with its mid tempo groove.

There’s a little filler on side two I feel with the electro instrumental Destitute Illusions that seems to lack direction even though I feel it’s a nod to the Brit Funk of the early 80s, and the techno repetition of Supersonic irritates more than uplifts. It’s what you might get if The Chemical Brothers remixed Jamiroquai.
It’s also an excuse for a Digeridoo solo I guess! Butterfly takes us into outer space with beautiful Rhodes and Wah Clav from Toby Smith, a sorely missed member of the crew since his untimely death in 2017.
The bass here is a multilayered experience with all kinds of shades and textures. It’s pure ear candy, or ear porn, take your pick.
While the basslines sound synthetic I wonder are they played by new member Nick Fyffe and then treated with effects? Original bassist Stuart Zender fell out with Jay Kay while recording the album in 1998 and his lines were scrubbed to avoid legal wranglings. I wonder what it would sound like with him?
Zender is missed simply because he has a magic touch that you only notice on the albums he’s not on. Where Do We Go From Here is pure EW&F again with hot and spicy horns making it all the more impressive. This is the real deal and I wish the bags would wound keep it this real more often.
Synkronized bows out with the quirky King For A Day which is the only Stevie Wonder nod on the whole album and it sounds a little forced and rushed. The drums seem too big and brash in the mix. It’s a string heavy beast too with a tale of revenge after a botched up romance, it’s also another reason that Deeper Underground should have been in the track listing!
Travelling Without Moving was a high watermark and while Synkronized satisfies with new technology on old grooves, the band unit seems to fall to the side. It’s an enjoyable ride but could have been better.