- So the story goes, "I Like The Sun (But Not On LCDs)" was the disco jewel of Dresden newcomer Jacob Korn's live show, unearthed by Running Back's ever astute A&R operation (ie. Gerd Janson), at the Toronto leg of the RBMA. Things become more interesting when you consider that this deal was cut over 30 months ago, yet I Like The Sun appears now, in the latter stages of 2009, to slot neatly into the Running Back catalog without the imprint having to break its stride.
The title track arrives like a time traveling Salsoul number, that's just stepped out of the vessel. Everything residing above the kick drum is treated with a joyous shimmering coat, from the spiral staircase lead line, to the push-pull strings, and arpegiated bass line. Like an upturned insect struggling on its back, the track does flip to reveal a darkened underbelly, but soon resolves itself and scurries off on its sunny way. "Selene" offers a comparatively brooding, yet half as satisfying lurch towards techier-territory. A synth line reminiscent of Omar-S' "U" piques the interest, but the straight-out the box hats, and more markedly, the disjointed clap don't play so well with it. Prins Thomas' "Diskomiks" of the A1, is a pleasant enough 13 minutes of slackened drums and fuzzy guitars, but feels too much like a straight-up live cover version. Imagine LCD Soundsystem forming a Jacob Korn tribute band and you'll be most of the way there. Not the Norwegians finest hour, but Thomas' version does at least serve to shine a light on the strength of the source material.
Although the strike rate tallies to one out of three, this release by no means signals a drying of the Running Back run; rather another facet in its intriguing discography.
Tracklist A1 I Like The Sun (But Not On LCDs)
A2 Selene
B I Like The Sun (Prins Thomas Diskomiks)