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If you can take Hologram Jams lightly and come to terms with the fact that Jaguar Love’s post-punk and rock pretenses are fully behind them, then it’s a fun outing. Ridiculous lyrics, bristling energy, ‘80s synths, and booty beats are the core of the record.
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Hologram Jams (that title remind you of Oracular Spectacular or Robotique Majestique?) is a vastly inferior record to Sea, replacing the dynamic punk psychedelia of their debut with sugary overstimulation and rank nostalgia.
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While it’s commendable, if unnecessary, that Whitney and Votolato are exploring new musical areas, there’s no denying the fact that if Take Me to the Sea ever ran into Hologram Jams in a dark alley, Hologram would be down for the count.
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Alternative PressThe dozen synth-and-drum-machine-laden tracks that make up Hologram Jams range from percolating to breezy to nostalgic to inescapably annoying as hell. [Apr 2010, p.123]
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Unfortunately, two good songs do little to temper the overall disappointment with this new direction, and having thoroughly enjoyed Take Me to the Sea, it really pains me to denigrate its successor.
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This time, the band added a dash of retro synths that, ironically, help the music sound more fresh.
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Glossing over realisations that the second half begins to drag, Hologram Jams won’t appease anybody who rates music to decimal points or regularly orders their record collection alphabetically. Instead, it’s fun in the same manner as a night out necking Lambrini and cheap cocktails.
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JL have dropped a weird pop record so humorously danceable that Ke$ha’s probably planning a collaboration as we type.
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The vocal strength that he displays elsewhere on the album isn’t there. There is the decided feeling of potential not being realised.