I Am Jordan

by I. Jordan

Overview

I. Jordan's first full-length was recorded after the genderqueer DJ/producer had stopped using their original name and started taking testosterone. The album is a vibrant expression of trans joy, as well as a document of the artist's personal journey and self-discovery. Musically, it calls back to their Northern English upbringing, far from the trendsetting club scene of London, where they relocated following university. While their previous EPs embraced glittery French house and booming breakbeat hardcore, I Am Jordan is a love letter to less fashionable dance styles that have always flourished up North, particularly donk, euphoric trance, hardstyle, and bassline. (The album doesn't quite tap into the cartoonish lunacy of happy hardcore, however.) After an opening track mainly consisting of big synth sweeps that slowly build and gain a ticking beat, "Casino High" is filled with skipping garage beats, flickering filtered loops, and fluttering vocal sighs. The record starts to let loose with "Real Hot n Naughty," a carefree anthem featuring a cheeky Scouse rap by Felix Mufti. "The Countdown" (featuring Taahliah) puts a banging donk on it and rockets to warp speed, elevated by sirens and gleeful rave melodies. The hazy downtempo reflection "Reification and Pathetic Fallacy" is a bit of a comedown, and "People Want Nice Things" similarly seems to stop and look around instead of push forward. "Round n Round" kicks the tempo back up, setting more sirens and rapid vocal samples to a massive speed garage bassline. "The Woodpecker" is shameless whimsy, preceding a comically overdriven whomp of a kick drum with an exuberant "yeehoo!" The remaining few tracks are shimmering and trancey, with "Close to You" being the biggest standout, due to its passionate vocal sample. A fun, celebratory record, I Am Jordan is an inspired effort that charts Jordan's growth as an artist and as a person. ~ Paul Simpson

Product Details

Release Date:	05/10/2024
Label:	Ninja Tune
UPC:	5054429190939
Rank:	99648

Tracks

Disc 1

1. When Lights Flash
2. Casino High
3. Real Hot n Naughty
4. The Countdown
5. Butterlick
6. Reification and Pathetic Fallacy

Disc 2

7. People Want Nice Things
8. Round n Round
9. The Woodpecker
10. 7 Degrees of Despondent
11. Close to You
12. Rapt Finis