Hiding slightly out of plain sight, Australian producer Mood J has been secretly crafting lush house jams for the last half decade bubbling just under the visible surface. With the artist and Asquith having briefly touched base at the beginning of the label’s journey, it took only a chance encounter in a Ballarat bungalow in 2016 to reignite the flames of the artist-label relationship. Jimmy surprisingly bumping into Jon (Mood J), as he was Daze’s housemate in Aus, whilst the Lobster crew were on tour there. Mood J’s hard drive was stashed with archive of warm, sizzling, analogue studio tracks cooked to the nines, and so here we are just over 14 months later with the full epic debut in hand.
The edits-y anthem Turn Your Love Around kicks things off in huge fashion with a stomping & heaving flip of a proper classic. Arrangement never felt so tight and this one rides heftily into the night. NY Vibration follows, smoothing things out with a lolloping New York house twist layered with rippling, resonant deep haus pads, searing top lines and an easy spoken word.
The flip kicks off with The Arps, a skittering hat skater with an ascending, descending and cascading arp line that hisses with sea spray and hot evenings in central Victoria.
Providing the last hurrah of the night we have Moonlight Drive. Summer heartbreak captured in a single moment and a slap bass. A melancholy Juno riding over a hint of twinkling optimism, saying that it's not over yet.