It always feels a little strange discovering an artist last in their career. They've lived a long and varied life before the output of their blood, sweat, and tears dropped into your life, and the event can challenge your self-conceived notion of the depth of your own musical journey. For instance, I've only recently been introduced to British producer and NYC resident Will Holland, aka Quantic, via his LP Dancing While Falling two or three days ago. You'd think that our paths would have crossed at some point before my encounter with his latest album seeing as he's been releasing music for over 20 years, and I used to both DJ and host a radio show that played a bunch of funk and dance music, but somehow we evaded each other until now. Knowing that he has such a long history as a producer certainly makes approaching an album like Dancing While Falling a little intimidating... I don't know anything about him other than what I've read, but according to sources, he's well versed in funk, soul and jazz (although, according to Wikipedia, this last genre affiliation still requires citation- apparently, some people are even less well acquainted with his work than myself) with a particular focus on how these traditions are informed by Latin and Afro Caribbean rhythms. What I've heard of his work, which of course, is primarily, Dancing While Falling, reminds me of the jammier sections of some of the early Gorillaz albums, which along with their obvious overtures to rock and hip-hop, were able to integrate fairly diverse traditions of rhythmic eletconic music into a cohesive whole. More than mere stylistic indicators, it is Holland's parallel ability to seamlessly synthesize the elements of various traditions to accent their past while hinting at their future which makes Dancing While Falling such a trip. It's a disco record that sounds like it comes from the streets- not in the sense of a lawless place- but a place that represents freedom and fulfillment. A Fiddler's Green in the present and now, comprised of hot asphalt and flowing rhythms, and populated by carefree, smiling faces- a meddle of sensation temping you to move in ways you never expected but find yourself compelled to by an internal drive and an unmasking deep-seated desire. It's a symphony of funk and human fealty that is unrestrained in its ascension toward a higher coalescence of connection and a unity of action, mantra, and groove. I can't speak for all of his catalogs, but Dancing While Falling has captured me with its charisma and pulled me in with a force, not unlike gravity, and I'm very pleased to have had the good fortune to tumble headfirst into it.
