Summer in the subtropics is persuasive. You’re convinced the pool was always the plan, an afternoon aperitif is the natural order, and time becomes less of something you manage and more of a suggestion you keep half an eye on.
This month’s long playing selection, Welcome to the Mood, belongs to these moments.
Synths arrive softly, with drums soon joining the musical conversation. The pace is unhurried and welcoming as each track rolls into the next, creating an atmosphere that feels both contemporary and timeless. With Leisure, that flow is very much the point.
If you listen closely, you start to notice how much restraint is at work. Vocals drift between close, personal moments and wider, more expansive passages. The musicians know when to step forward and when to leave space. That shared understanding, that intelligence, gives the album its dynamic.
One track carries a line: the colour of the sound keeps rising. It’s apt, and you feel it as the record plays. The energy becomes more buoyant, more magnetic. You’ll likely hear it here by the pool or drifting through the lobby.
Each month, Music Director Darren Somerville selects one album as our Long Playing feature. An invitation to listen the way records were always intended to be heard, from start to finish.
You can experience Welcome to the Mood in the Library on Level One, alongside our broader vinyl collection, or stream the album wherever you are.
Listening Notes
Smooth, modern funk at an effortless pace
Organic instrumentation
Polished, easy vocal harmonies
May cause a relaxed and unhurried mood
Best enjoyed as intended, from start to finish
