When it comes to music, the lines distinguishing genres are meant to be blurred.
Naturally, the “Electro Swing” label that accompanied Mocean Worker’s new self-titled release was an intriguing one. Imagine dance music meets 70s dance funk, and maybe you’ll begin to understand just what Mocean Worker is all about.
Having dabbled with various electronic styles, Mocean, aka Adam Dorn, returned to his roots as a bassist. Spending most of his career avoiding the natural bass sound, this new release is a homecoming of sorts. He certainly makes himself at home, that’s for funkin’ sure.
Opening to the dancey synth tones of “Soul Swing”, some light piano keys usher in a mellow groove. A narrator says, casually, “you know, we’re making a record and we’d like for you to be on it.” Naturally, the beat drops immediately after, riding out the tune with various brass and bass funk melodies.
In a press release, Dorn explains his sound:
“It’s a party record for serious people, it’s like Basie, the Gap Band and I walk into a bar and hang. My music has always a fistfight between 1930s and 1960s, and now the 70s and 80s are in there because of the funk thing. It’s musical, it’s house-y, it’s mixed right, it’s smart — it’s like, dance music for people who hate dance music.”
Fortunately for me, Dorn hit the nail on the head. Tracks like “RubberBand” and “The Actual Funk” showcase Dorn’s chops on the bass, gelling perfectly with a new age synth medley. It’s downright sexy, when you find it.
Dorn continued to adeptly describe his own groove.
“In electronic music, there’s this whole notion of ‘bass culture,’ and it always cracks me up because, as a bass player, I kind of take offense — I’m like, ‘No, this is a bass! You’re just using a frequency!’ I’ve never heard someone incorporate a certain type of playing with a certain type of programming and a certain type of song structure, along with certain parts of the American song experience and the jazz experience and the funk experience. So I was like, I’m going to go for it. I’m gonna get my Sinatra on and do this my way!”
Fortunately for us listeners, Dorn’s way is a huge success. Even the track “PunkDisco (Jaco)”, obviously a tribute to Jaco Pastorius, is steeped in an immersive blend of bass funk and spacey tones. Listen below; there is genuinely no better way to spend the next two minutes:
One listen to this new Mocean Worker album and you’ll ask yourself, “how did it take so long for this guy to start playing the bass on his records?” Considering that the entirety of Mocean Worker was produced and mixed by Dorn himself, it’s an incredibly impressive feat. I know I’ll be coming back for more!
You can purchase the album here.