photo credit: Raymond Flotat

James Blake is back with a new single titled “Thrown Around.”

Clocking it at 4 minutes and 20 seconds, the listener is thrown around into a sophisticated sonic journey led by Blake. We start with synths and and vocals, then the bass sneaks in. The drums begin in a classic indie rock fashion, but as they drop in and out the beat shifts in subtle ways, the synths pick up and the palate changes. The ear will follow Blake’s voice while the floor falls out from under the listener’s feet and transport to another dimension with each verse. The song never loses momentum and ends strongly.

Blake says about the song: “‘Thrown Around’ is a nod to some of the music I grew up listening to, growing up in England. It started as an ambient piece that I made with Dom Maker, that connected something very deep in me to the influence of British electronic bands. It’s a defiant song that’s wrestling with where our job takes us, what it does to our life. It deals with the draw backs of spending so much time dedicated to work. We don’t have any drives towards community – we are all driven towards success. Then we feel lonely and thrown around. This song brings people together – it is the connection through defiance.”

NME has the story here.