Establishing the mood with breathy vocalizations, intertwined with a dark-wave synthscape, JayKay (also known as Jonathan Kamara) opens Why Won’t You Abandon Me? with an evocative energy and the question, “Why won’t you abandon me when I am useless, when I drag all my damage through the ruins…”
It’s extremely visceral and vivid. What JayKay is sharing feels vulnerable, raw, authentic, and cinematic. We could imagine this in the recent season of Euphoria on HBO, in a poignant scene with Nate and Cassie.
We are enthralled by the cerebral subversion that manifests, and JayKay‘s candid delivery. He reminds us of early Faithless, particularly the track Insomnia. The vocal production switch-up is welcome, showcasing JayKay‘s poetic prowess as a spoken word artist.
The glitched nuances add to the dimensionality before the artist shares an extremely emotional delivery of the key question at stake. A choral vocal synth evokes a more dreamlike atmosphere half way through the track, evolving with industrial textures to a more trippy expression as JayKay speeds up his flow showcasing an epic high-octane vibe that is absolutely enthralling. The final moments serve as serene and mediative, but most certainly leaves us yearning for more.
Speaking on what inspired the track, Jonathan says, “[It was] how I felt at that time and moving away to uni and feeling alone at times but still smiling through the pain cause of my work etc.” He adds, “Sometimes in life you might get abandoned by the people you thought loved you.”
He cites Quadeca as a sonic influence, but there is no doubt that JayKay is creating a sonic universe unto his own design. The rising artist also shares that the track was recorded entirely in his bedroom, lit only by a single lamp.
We love the journey that JayKay has taken us on, and have added Why Won’t You Abandon Me? to our New Music Spotlight playlist and our TRIPPY playlist, whilst we continue to stream his wider discography, including War Behind The Pose, and Garden Of Greed.