Whatever the Weather II

"Whatever the Weather II" (2025) Dark Green Vinyl LP by Whatever the Weather.

Over the past five years or so, London-based Loraine James has carved out a distinctive musical identity, fuelled by sophisticated songwriting, raw experimentation and unpredictable, intricate electronic programming. Her Hyperdub releases under her own name are dominated by IDM-influenced, vocal-heavy collaborations, while her alias "Whatever The Weather" sees her release more striking and introspective.

James named each track after the "emotional temperature" of the time of creation, but says that listening to it later can sometimes feel completely different. This, too, is due to the fickleness of the environment. Compared to the Antarctic imagery of his previous album, "II" has a distinctly warmer feel. This is exemplified by the desert landscape cover photography by Collin Hughes and the packaging design by Justin Hunt Sloane. Both albums share mastering by his friend Josh Eustis, also known as Telefon Tel Aviv, which lends a three-dimensional depth to James's complex sound creations.

Following on from the previous album, this conceptual album has titles based on temperature. I thought waking up to a song that corresponds to the highest temperature of the day would add color to my days (Ammel).