Flowjob - Support Normality

Flowjob are a Danish progressive duo (Joakim Hjorne & Mads Tinggaard) long known from their releases on Iboga, one of the world’s leading psytrance labels. Their style is quaint and easygoing, friendly and upbeat, without a single dark cloud on the horizon. Flowjob’s light and groovy beats are a cheerful compliment to the moodier work of Frogacult—a fellow Danish act also signed to Iboga. From their origins on FX in 2003, Flowjob have released on a handful of high profile progressive compilations from Iboga and Tribal Vision such as Set 5, Lime Light, and Street Art. Support Normality is their full-length debut, released at the very start of 2006, slightly before Iboga’s excellent winter-themed Hibernation compilation came out. Flowjob’s style has not changed too much from what has been heard in smaller doses thus far, although one can discern some influence from the likes of D-Nox & Beckers on the fluffier tunes. The album is relatively slow, cruising along between 128 to 133 BPM. Every track is clean and polished.

Flowjob provide the perfect introduction to their album with Run Baby Run. The introduction is very drawn out, slowly gathering strength over the course of three and a half minutes. When the beat finally gets going, the bass line keeps it moving as many of the elements first previewed in the long intro slowly slide into place. This is wistful, emotional, and complex—just what the doctor ordered. Too bad it all starts to go downhill from here; no track on Support Normality is as excellent as this blindingly good opener.

Everland Airport is a carefree track loaded with funky riffs and plenty of charm. The arrangement is fairly simple, maintaining a steady drive interspersed with a recurring voice sample stating “electric power.” For some reason, I find this partially reminiscent of the later works from Slide (Pete Martin) such as Closure. Cute and groovy!

Flangers in the Night is another pleasant song with a very satisfying bass line. Glistening melodies breeze by, small vocal manipulations lend a mildly emotional quality to the song, and everything is arranged with casual grace. In essence, it is another smooth and relaxed morning tune.

Have Fun and Survive is more of the same: floating atmospheric particles layered over groovy bass with a friendly and upbeat character. The fluttering melodic lead and the use of vocoder samples lends this one more of an electro feel. This is where the D-Nox & Beckers influence begins to emerge.

Wannafrisbee offers up a lengthly introduction before laying down a snappy electro beat. Classy chords streak and shimmer across the rhythm as it grows. Eventually the song drops into one of the album’s few big breakdowns. The return is rather weak, although it seems to be in character. The remainder is marked by a jazzy sample and more standard electro lines. Mediocre.

They Are Not Alone follows the established Flowjob formula quite closely, throwing some ragga samples in to spice up the mix. There is nothing else remarkable about this sultry piece of beach house, but it does sound pleasant.

Mood Food is a strong track late in the album. Bold melodic flourishes fill the air with layers of liquid sunshine, and the late breakdown introduces a quirky sample. It’s slightly tougher than the rest and stands out because of it.

Wadley was previously released on Set 5. Quoting myself from the review: “lazy prog-house crossover material with floating atmospheres and an intelligent touch to the arrangement. Nothing really stands out, but I wouldn’t hesitate to slip it into a set if it were going to fit.”

The final song—Glitter—features some very cheesy vocals from someone named Trine Jensen. It starts with “I’m the sunshine / I’m the glitter in your eyes” and only gets worse. I must admit I abhor this kind of shameless fluff. It’s a bad way to end the album, but at least that makes it easy to skip.

Support Normality is a mediocre slice of sunny electro trance. The first track is truly fantastic, but the rest don’t really measure up. There is some good music here, but just as much filler. As an album designed for background listening, it certainly works. As this review may show, it does not stand up under analysis. Even though I mark this as average, it is the kind of release you can reach for just about any time. There is something to be said for blandness, I suppose. As long as you remember to reach for the stop button before the last track comes on, you’re safe. Perhaps those with more of an appreciation for what is sometimes termed “sexy” progressive might like this more than I do. Personally I feel as if Flowjob could have done much better, but Support Normality is by no means unlistenable. It is merely adequate, and no more. Had they all been like Run Baby Run it would have been a different story, but they aren’t. I would still encourage anyone with a taste for this kind of music to play this out on some warm summer afternoon—the results may be pleasantly satisfying, if not mind-blowing.

Purchase Options

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