Reviewed by Mike Rimmer

It's long been a contention here at Cross Rhythms that the American Christian dance music scene has always been inferior to the type of music created on these isles. And now here's someone who is going to contradict that idea. The Weather Inside isn't a group but the working name of Jesse Cohen who is based in Oklahoma. This adventurous collection of ambient and dance tracks is described as a mesh of vintage beats, '80s melodies, Atari bits, male/female vocals and lush orchestral arrangements and I couldn't have put it better myself. Throw into the mix some well chosen audio samples (whether that's police sirens or an operator connecting a call) and you get the whole picture. Cohen has a clever knack of creating memorable grooves and unlike so much of the monotony of the genre, doing something really interesting so that the overall ambience demands repeated listening. Standouts for me are "Track 9" with its mixture of strings and female vocal melting together. The opening cut is immediate and features Nick Swanson doing what sounds like a pretty neat Ringo Starr impression! Overall The Weather Inside manage to sound retro and thoroughly contemporary at the same time and this slab of creativity deserves to be heard beyond the realm of dance freaks since there is plenty which is artful and masterful about this album.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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