Now what the fuck am I supposed to do with this, Jack Latham?? Jam City threw me for such a loop last week with the release of “Crisis”, the second preview track from his forthcoming untitled-so-far LP on Night Slugs. Latham’s first full-length as JC, Classical Curves, still stands out to me as one of the most enduring, forward-thinking, and downright beautiful electronic albums to emerge in the last decade. So why the hell is he making pop music?

We saw the evolution, somewhat – through three “Earthly” mixes released this year, repping everything from Rickie Lee Jones to Herbert Marcuse interviews. We know he is anti-genre rigidity. We know he prefers to sport big sexy beats and a glossy, critical sheen. These things are not new. What surprises here are the intimate, breathy vocals, the (sorry) deeply 80s guitar riffage, and the big-pop arrangement. So now – final question – how the fuck does this guy still pull it all off?

I am refreshingly surprised by “Crisis”. I am never surprised by one of my international internet artists, I always expect something and generally get it. The tendency is sameness – I know what I want, and where to get it. Bless Jack Latham for giving me something I didn’t know I needed from a place where I expected greatness.