2/5 stars
Like a throwback to ’80s white boy funksters, Tuxedo are Mayer Hawthorne and Jake One. They’re smoother than a velvet glove and their music is a souped-up Philadelphia sound with upfront bass, synthesiser and programming. These run in tandem with the safe funk strands of a less revolutionary-sounding Simply Red.
Aside from frequently bastardising the English language, the slick production should ensure they get a satisfactory amount of airplay on less critical radio stations. A heady mix of Sylvester, Sade and Edwin Starr, Tuxedo make an elegant slide into a stately kind of funk and deliberately embark on a retro grand tour. It’s a return to action in the name of an idea rather than the application of individual thought to an imagined bohemia. ‘R U Ready’ and ‘Get U Home’ have elements of chauvinism that cannot be pitied or protected, although a degree of redemption is provided by ‘Watch The Dance’ and ‘Tuxedo Groove’.
Tuxedo display an obvious and substantial talent, albeit one which is inherently confined by rigid boundaries and repeated themes. It’s pretty and listenable, but has the lasting effect of painting a watercolour in the rain.
Tuxedois out through Stones Throw/Inertia.
