Arjuna Oakes: While I'm Distracted (digital outlets)

Singer/writer/producer Arjuna Oakes – who seems to divide his time between Britain and Aotearoa New Zealand – has appeared a few times at Elsewhere, but always in association with others.

He collaborated with his mentor, the classical composer John Psathas, on the It's Already Tomorrow project, played and sang on albums with Serebii, Nathan Haines (on his recent Notes) and others.

Along the way he has released seven EPs under his own name since 2019.

He's played festivals and shows here and in Britain and was composer-in-residence for Orchestra Wellington.

A busy man working across the musical spectrum so he brings considerable experience and ideas to this 14-song double vinyl debut.

As expected from the diversity of his previous work, here he roams confidently across electronica, folk, jazz and neo-soul with a string section, horns and assistance from Haines, Serebii (who also co-produced) and engineer Lee Prebble (of Wellington's famous Surgery Studio).

While I'm Distracted – at times like a midpoint between Seventies soul and the jazz experimentalism of David Bowie's Blackstar – might have benefitted from some editing, but it plays out as a diverting, sophisticated and integrated hour of music with an enjoyable disregard for genre constraints.

There's an ease in how Oakes' compositions shift direction: No Joke goes from a soulful pastel-shades of folk through woozy then sweeping atmospheric ambience before cutting to a funky percussion and bass break which seem natural transitions.

His sometimes romantic, sweeping string arrangements are a binding feature as they wrap further warmth around his gentle, expressive vocals on the cinematic Catch Me with Haines on flute and the jazz ballad Lay Low.

The album also astutely shuffles styles to bring in soft scratching (the airy and looped Before It's All Over), quirky synth-pop (Motel), soul-folk (the acoustic miniature Get Me Some Grief), a jazz-coloured Beatlesque ballad (I Am Alive) and more, including the jerky anxieties of Pocketful of Paranoia.

Pocketful of Paranoia

Quite a journey.

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You can hear and buy this album at bandcamp here