At Latitude festival this year James Rhodes was unfortunate enough to be stuck performing within range of the sound system of a monstrous headline set by Florence & The Machine. He winced as he took to the stage, swearing about her “racket” and defying the odds by holding his concentration whilst playing solo piano pieces. That’s more than most of the audience managed frankly; attention was frequently diverted by outbursts of Florence and her over-rated bucket belching routine. Rhodes set seemed incredible, from what managed to cut through the aural fog. I’m sure he played a blinder actually, but overall everyone would surely concede that he and his modest audience lost the battle to the mainstream assault. On the positive side though, he might just win the war. If someone has set themselves perfectly situated to push classical music back into more popularist waters this year it’s James Rhodes. If I had to put money on he or old Florence still having a viable music career in ten years time, he’d get my money every time! His winning formula is not simply the modern dress sense, the lack of pretence and snobbery although these definitely all help. It’s simply in the way that he puts his soul and emotion into every piece he plays, and if you’re lucky enough to catch him live he’ll convey the relevance of these pieces in a way that you rarely encounter on the classical circuit, where it is generally assumed the audience know what was going through Beethoven’s mind while composing. With that considered, until the day when digital sleevenotes are a given, I’d point you towards the physical version of this album where Rhodes own written text is a vital complimentary component. To my ears however, his biggest asset is in his approach to piano playing. It could be because he’s well versed in modern music too, but something in the way he’ll literally thrash away at the keys during those high tempo moments is more Jerry Lee Lewis than Lang Lang. It’s with that abandon that James Rhodes effectively resuscitates classical texts back into living, breathing progressive monsters that demand attention. I’m sure he’s going to be getting a lot more over the next few years. Have a listen below:
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