Slowly Rolling Camera Silver Shadow LP

TAS Rated 4/5 Music, 4/5 Sonics in the October 2024 Issue of The Absolute Sound!

Since bursting onto the scene in 2013, Cardiff's Slowly Rolling Camera has carved a niche in the European jazz tapestry, effortlessly melding soul-stirring rhythms, magnetic melodies, and a rich tapestry of emotional hues. Known for their distinctive alchemy of jazz finesse, cinematic gravitas, and electronic flair, Slowly Rolling Camera are sculptors of sound, perpetually pushing the boundaries of musical creativity.

Their 2024 album, Silver Shadow, delves even deeper into the cinematic realm. "This album reflects our fascination with the cinematic approach, not just in sound, but in how we construct our music," they share. Inspired by the visual and musical interplay in film montages, Silver Shadow centers around a fictious protagonist, encapsulated both in the album's narrative arc and its striking artwork. The tracks, concise and emotionally consistent, mark a departure from their previous longer compositions, aiming instead for immediate impact.

The core trio—Dave Stapleton, Deri Roberts, and Elliot Bennett—drive the band's collective ethos, alongside a vibrant ensemble of collaborators including Jasper Høiby on bass, Josh Arcoleo on sax, Stuart McCallum on guitar, and Verneri Pohjola on trumpet. Their genre-defying approach and profound emotional depth have drawn comparisons to icons like The Cinematic Orchestra and GoGo Penguin, capturing hearts worldwide and earning acclaim from The Guardian and Crack Magazine, among others. Deutschland Radio has hailed their ingenious fusion of jazz and trip-hop, cementing their status as contemporary maestros.

Celebrating a decade of innovation in 2024, Slowly Rolling Camera continues to evolve. Their inaugural album in 2014 championed a raw, organic sound with double bass, drums, and Rhodes at its core—a theme that resonates through their subsequent works, Juniper and Where the Streets Lead, and returns with renewed focus in Silver Shadow. "The Cinematic Orchestra's influence since the early 2000s has been profound, inspiring our signature blend of acoustic and electronic elements, crafted to be upfront, edgy, and raw," the band reflects.

Marking their sixth studio release, Silver Shadow not only reaffirms Slowly Rolling Camera's innovative spirit but also celebrates their impressive streaming success, with over 20 million streams to date. This album is a reaffirmation of their enduring sound and evolving legacy in the contemporary music landscape.

They can be fast and frisky or mellow and melodic, but this Welsh trip-hop jazz unit is always imaginative...Silver Shadow is proof that there's cutting-edge jazz coming from Cardiff, home to the world's oldest record store.