‘A Life of Consummate Ease’ comes to us on ATIC Records, the label set up by Andy Turner (better known as Aim) upon leaving Grand Central, and the influence of both Aim and the wider Grand Central stable is heard throughout Gripper’s music. This is to say that there is a plethora of styles and sounds at work on this album and you never quite know what’s coming next. ‘The Interpreter’, for example, is a frantic trumpet blast of Latin Jazz, whilst ‘Zombie’ is a bouncing, Trackmode-esque slab of synth-house and ‘Backwater Prophet’ takes up Rae & Christian’s instrumental Hip-Hop mantle. Amazingly, though, the quality is consistent right across the board and so it is this impressive variety that is the making of this album. For me, the high point is the return of Niko, another Grand Central stalwart, putting in a powerful performance when providing vocals on ‘The Daddy’.
