In the same way that The Beatles got to bagsy themselves the best pop songs by virtue of being the first out of the blocks in the 1960s, it must have been easier to compose genuinely original sounding house music back in the days when dancing around to 4/4 rhythms in a dark club was still something of a novelty. And although club music has continued to perpetually innovate, artist albums by house music producers are rarely things of beauty. Jay Shepheard is the exception that proves the rule.

Following a string of EPs on the Compost Black label, and a debut full length in 2013, Seeing Sound is both completely conventional and bursting with ideas. It’s completely conventional because on the face of it, this is an album comprised of eight house tracks, all hovering around the six minute mark, with little stylistic variation on display. There’s no nod to the genre-splicing that now defines a great deal of club music. But yet Seeing Sound feels like its shot through with energy, from the clipped boogie of Mover Friendly to the warm electronics and careful piano work of One Day City.

The elliptical and seductive Dance Language is a highlight, while the two songs that close the album (Sweep D’Amore and Night Bells) are timeless, in the same way Ewan Pearson or Ralph Lawson’s material can be. Accomplished and assured, this is nice work from an artist who doesn’t seem to need to reinvent the wheel in order to produce something fresh and original.

Adam Corner