- Released: 1985
- Origin: London, England
- Label: 4AD
- Best Track: Gunet
Going through some more oddities from the past as this project reaches its final entries. Early ’80s instrumental post-punk band Dif Juz released three albums between 1983 and 1985, of which the third, Extractions, is the only one that’s easy to find.
It’s an interesting and effortlessly cool record. Skip the opening track ‘Crosswinds’, which is just seven and a half minutes of infernal trumpet tootling to me, and after that it’s most rewarding. ‘A Starting Point’ loses you in a ’80s haze – as in proper ’80s, not 21st Century trying to be ’80s.
It could just be me being full of seasonal schmaltz, but ‘Gunet’ feels almost Christmassy with its twinkling guitars and jingling percussion, while final track ‘Re’ is precise and moving, and it reminds me of another song that might have come before or after it, and it’s driving me mad that I can’t think what it is!
Anyway, a lovely find, and a valuable snapshot of a time that seems distant and fresh at the same time.
366Music 