Anna Butterss – ‘Mighty Vertebrate’ album review: lo-fi jazz pop verging on the beige
THE SKINNY: Jazz, as a musical style and genre, boasts such a rich and varied history that it can often be difficult to find new ways to explore the scene. For Adelaide-born musician Anna Butterss, this idea has never particularly stopped them from continuing to explore and be innovative within the jazz scene. Having worked with an impressive roster of artists, from Aimee Mann to Andrew Bird, it is fair to say that the artist’s sophomore record, Mighty Vertebrate, has been hotly anticipated. Whether or not it lives up to the hype is another story entirely.
First of all, it should be noted that this is certainly not a record for jazz purists. While Butterss does draw from elements of old-school free jazz, and the sax playing of Josh Johnson is particularly enjoyable, the bulk of this record survives on modern electronic innovations using some of the conventions of jazz to punctuate its tracklisting. The vast majority of the record adheres more towards the feeling of being a downtempo, lo-fi beat that largely makes for gentle background listening. While there are flashes of energy here and there, this is not an album you are likely to play at a house party.
Butterss, both as a composer and songwriter, has undeniable talent, and many of the songs on Mighty Vertebrate – particularly towards the end of the tracklisting – are genuinely enjoyable and impressive feats of jazz-influenced innovation. Unfortunately, though, the overarching sound of the album often fails to be captivating due to a lack of diversity or originality. Even on some of the more enjoyable instrumental moments, the album’s colossal overproduction seems to overshadow the clear musical talent of both Butterss and their band.
The lo-fi electronic feeling that the album is inseparable from is, at this point in time, at risk of becoming stale, so it is a shame that so much of Butterss’ album relies on that sound. Especially considering the fact that, when the musician moves towards more conventional jazz, those songs provide some of the highlights of the record. Ultimately, the record feels very polished, planned, and professional which – depending on how you look at it – could be seen as a positive. For me, though, this prevents Butterss or their band from ever feeling as though they are creating music organically or improvisationally, which limits the creative expression of the album.
Ultimately, the success of this record will come as a result of the audience it targets. For those listeners who are content to listen to something purely as background music, without anything too noteworthy occurring, then Mighty Vertebrate is a decent enough choice. For those searching for a refreshing modern take on electronic jazz, this is not the album for you.
For fans of: Telling everybody you know that you’re really into jazz music, but only ever putting on a pre-made playlist on Spotify to use as background music.
A concluding comment from Ben’s housemate: “Here I was, minding my own business, and now suddenly I’ve been transported back to GCSE revision with ‘lo-fi chill hip-hop beats to relax/study to’ on YouTube.”
Mighty Vertebrate track by track:
Release date: October 4th | Producer: Ben Lumsdaine and Anna Butterss | Label: International Anthem
‘Bishop’: A promising start to the album, which blends a menagerie jazz styling with modern, electronic influences to create something pretty fun and danceable, if a little forgettable. [3/5]
‘Shorn’: This is an excellent summation of Butterss’ talents, moving from slow, atmospheric jazz soundscapes to something more bombastic in the blink of an eye. Certainly one of the more captivating tracks on this record. [3.5/5]
‘Dance Steve (feat. Jeff Parker)’: Expectedly, given the credentials of free jazz and experimental legend Jeff Parker, this is a chaotic and largely experimental track that often feels overbearing and potentially overproduced yet keeps you coming back for repeated listening. [3/5]
‘Ella’: The shortest song on the record by some margin, ‘Ella’ blends dreamy electronica with brooding sax and downtempo jazz, which gives the impression of building to something that never really arrives. [2.5/5]
‘Lubbock’: A guitar-heavy composition which feels as if it should be playing during a film scene in which a protagonist gets lost in a desert and has to find their way back to civilization. It is successful in generating an atmosphere but ultimately feels like background music. [3/5]
‘Pokemans’: Continuing the ‘chill lo-fi beats to relax to’ theme of this album, Butterss dives headfirst into their retro electronic influences on this song that has been dubbed “Gameboy-core,” which should tell you all you need to know about its content. [2/5]
‘Breadrich’: At this point on the track listing, the lack of variety in Butterss’ sound is becoming pretty tiresome. Granted, this song leans more fully into the bass and guitar tracks, but the inherent lo-fi electronic sound which dominates the record is becoming fantastically dragging. [2/5]
‘Seeing You’: Thankfully, Butterss’ electronic sound takes a backseat in this effort, with raw instrumentation taking the limelight. This switch-up in sound is refreshing, and the instrumentation is great in this song, although it does not contain much in the way of narrative. [2.5/5]
‘Counterpoint’: Josh Johnson’s saxophone stylings have been a highlight throughout the album, so it is nice to see them rising to the forefront on this track, free from being drowned out by a deluge of other sounds. [3/5]
‘Saturno’: The kind of cinematic modern jazz soundscape that Butterss does very well, with brilliant backing from their band. If the record, as a whole, had adopted these kinds of sounds more often than generic lo-fi beats, it would have been a far more interesting project. [3.5/5]
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