Jagga - Modern Day Romance

‘No more love songs and sweet nothings.’ An interesting start to a song titled ‘Modern Day Romance’ for sure, electro misanthropist Jagga leading us in with an opening sequence of bouncy beats and dismissive lyrics. Before the vocal comes in the music is oddly akin to the atmospheric electronic tribalism of newer These New Puritans, the mood and tension mounting into an inch perfect verse of simple but effective lyrics and singalong vocals, in a style somewhere between The Presets and Fischerspooner. The chorus though brings in a truly anthemic quality, even managing a ‘woah-oh-oh’ without entirely succumbing to dumb cliché. Cleverly it adds a hedonistic tone to the criticism of modern romance, suggesting that there is some hope (or at least short-lived fun) to be had after all.

Having already worked with Magnetic Man and Starsmith it seems very safe to say that Jagga is destined for big things, but if he can maintain the personality, wit and subtlety shown here he could be so much more revered. Jagga could be one of the rarest of things; an artist who could satisfy both connoisseurs and casual fans, his funky danceable songs could easily match the best of that ilk. Charts, festivals and dancefloors everywhere get ready, Jagga is coming. Be it in the dark electro-guise of the A-Side or even the reggae / dubstep crossover found on the B-Side, he’s going to be big and he could be brilliant.

This song is one of the standout tracks of 2010, refining the up-and-coming sounds of the likes of Fenech Soler through a rich electronic history, Jagga’s own MySpace listing Devo among his influences, and creating a song still far ahead of the sum of its parts.