With Lunch, Phil Passera and Jimmy Day serve up their first proper album – after more than 13 years of musical slow-cooking. The two brains behind Payfone have never been interested in quick hits, but have always delivered rare, handmade delicacies that lie somewhere between downtempo, disco, soul and analog synth magic. No samples, just real instruments and special voices – carefully selected and carefully placed. Each of these guest appearances sounds so organic and harmonious, as if Payfone created the ideal sound space for each individual voice and fine-tuned it.
Recorded between Brighton and Barcelona, ,Lunch unfolds its six tracks like a carefully curated star menu. Opener »Movin’ On« with Willis Earl Beal glides smoothly through melancholy mid-tempo spheres. »Paperman« grooves warm and sun-drenched, »Joan of Arc« floats Mediterranean-style with shimmering guitars and synths, while »Spend the Night« discreetly aims for the dancefloor with dub-disco sounds and vocals by Carmella The Balls.
Smooth is the key word. Everything seems effortlessly interwoven, relaxed and yet precise. The mood that Payfone has always stood for is in full bloom here. It is intimate, detailed and emotionally charged. If you know Payfone, you know it’s all about feeling. Lunch is not just an album for the side, but analog sound art in the digital age. As a vinyl-only release, it seems even more tangible and retrospective.
Lunch
