Still waiting on Nicolas Jaar to produce for a rapper. When I interviewed him last year, we spoke about his love of hip-hop, dreams of producing it, and his “Lean Back” remix. If Fat Joe is looking for a final carpetbagging, it starts here. Instead, we get Visuals’ “A Pixel,” which tends to have a similar aesthetic as every indie-pop band in existence. Sensitive buttoned-up vocals, clean drum machines, a tempo suitable to contemplate life over a glass of Pinot Noir. But in spite of itself, this is a very good song.
It’s tempting and probably spot-on to assign Jaar much of the credit. “A Pixel” works because of the time shifts, breakdowns, and creative flourishes from Dave Harrington’s guitars to the odd solitary piano vamp (1:15) that reminds me of the Beatles without lapsing into schmaltz. The drop is gentle but funky. It’s Jaar’s aesthetic writ small: patient, meticulous, and preternaturally self-assured. He’s after spells not songs. And heart, the lyrics strike the same theme as “Can It All Be So Simple.” It’s a lament for simpler times from lyrics down to the Web 1.0 graphics. It is small but not insignificant.
