James Blake Teases Old Sounds On “Big Hammer”

British musician James Blake experiments with old sounds on his new single “Big Hammer.” The song serves as the lead single off of his newly-announced album, Playing Robots Into Heaven. It is his first individual work since he released his ambient album, Wind Down, in collaboration with the generative music app Endel in 2022. Wind Down took fans by surprise as it was different from what Blake had released in the past, including the remarkable Friends That Break Your Heart.

More recently, Blake has collaborated on the soundtrack that artist Metro Boomin presented for the new movie, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. This collaboration is one of the many Blake has had throughout his career as an artist and producer. His credits feature many other names, including André 3000, Beyoncé, Bon Iver, Kendrick Lamar, Rosalía, and SZA.

While Blake has experience and popular releases in many different genres, “Big Hammer” goes back to his more electronic, dance sounds. Between 2009 and 2010, Blake released a series of experimental singles and EPs. Since then, he has progressed more towards R&B, rap, and, simply put, put-you-in-your-feels music. Playing Robots In Heaven could be his return to his roots. “Big Hammer” is a track that features none of Blake’s vocals but rather his glitchy, club instrumentals with samples of dancehall vocals from Flinty Badman.