Leifur James | Smoke In The Air II

Leifur James' "Smoke In The Air II" - instrumental version revealing Formanta drum machines and Mellotron textures from the London/Lisbon producer's 2025 release.

---

Story Behind “Smoke In The Air II”

The Instrumental Reveal and Valentine’s Day Release

“Smoke In The Air II” opens Leifur James’ February 14, 2025 release Magic Seeds II—an instrumental companion album that strips away the vocals from his November 2024 third album Magic Seeds. The original “Smoke In The Air” served as the opening track and lead single for that album, setting a spectral, hypnotic tone that James described as originating “from a feeling of connection. When you have a magnetism and a smoke like haze that surrounds you both.” The instrumental version removes that vocal narrative, revealing the intricate production architecture that existed beneath.

James explained his decision to release the instrumental versions: “It was in the balance in the writing process for this record whether to leave many of these as instrumental and electronic works, and ‘Magic Seeds II’ is my chance to share more of that side. Without the top lines it leaves a bit more room for you to hear some of the production; you can hear the crunch of the Formanta drum machine, the Mellotron, and some of the field recordings dug into the sound design. It’s nice to let them be the focus.” For “Smoke In The Air II,” this meant foregrounding the gritty, DJ Shadow-influenced bass, the cinematic sweep of strings, and the layered electronic textures that reference the “barren romance” of the French film Portrait of a Lady on Fire.

From London Sessions to Lisbon Editing

The bones of “Smoke In The Air” (and by extension “Smoke In The Air II”) were laid down during a single-day collaborative session in London that occurred after the pandemic. Producer and engineer Oli Bayston (known for his solo work as Boxed In and production for Olivia Dean and Rachel Chinouriri) contacted James to collaborate. They brought together drummer Leo Taylor from the Floating Points Ensemble (also of The Invisible) and violinist/composer Raven Bush from Speakers Corner Quartet for an improvisational recording day. James came with ideas but deliberately kept the session raw and reactive—musicians responding to each other without rigid structure.

These London sessions produced hours of material that James then spent two years editing “with laser-like precision” after relocating to Lisbon in 2023. The Portuguese capital’s light and energy profoundly influenced his final editing decisions. “The light refracts off all the tiles around the city,” James explained. “I wanted to engage with the light again, and celebrate new growth—coming here was a kind of gift to myself, so I could prioritise what I need in life.” For James, who grew up in London and cut his teeth at legendary underground club Plastic People (where he witnessed Floating Points DJing jazz in the middle of sets at age 14), the move represented a necessary creative rupture.

“Smoke In The Air II” Recording and Production Details

The Collaborative Foundation and Talk Talk Inspiration

The original recording sessions that birthed “Smoke In The Air II” were inspired by Talk Talk’s pioneering 1988 album Spirit of Eden, which was recorded over a year in a blacked-out room with minimal direction or communication between musicians. James craved that kind of organic, collaborative energy after years of isolated COVID lockdowns. “I was craving human interaction!” he told Metal Magazine. “I think you can hear that energy, connection, and musicianship in this record at the root.”

Leo Taylor’s drumming provided rhythmic foundations while Raven Bush’s violin added string textures that James could later manipulate and layer. Oli Bayston handled both production and engineering duties during the sessions, capturing the improvisational moments that James would spend the next two years sculpting into final tracks. The sessions represented a departure from James’ more self-sufficient approach on previous albums—this was intentionally collaborative, bringing community and depth to the sound before James processed and “messed around with it all for a while.”

Formanta, Mellotron, and Field Recording Details

“Smoke In The Air II” showcases production elements that were partially obscured in the vocal version. The Formanta drum machine—a Soviet-era analog rhythm box known for its crunchy, lo-fi character—provides percussive textures alongside Taylor’s live drumming. The Mellotron, the tape-based keyboard instrument famous for its use by The Beatles, King Crimson, and Radiohead, adds ethereal, orchestral swells that blend with Bush’s recorded violin parts.

James also incorporated field recordings into the sound design—environmental audio captured in Lisbon and London that creates atmospheric depth without calling attention to itself. These sonic elements layer to create what Juno Download described as “slow-burn cinematic sweep” and “James Holden-esque blissful electronica.” The production evokes both the gritty UK bass James absorbed during his formative mid-2000s London club years and the luminous spaciousness he found in Lisbon.

Notes About “Smoke In The Air II” by Leifur James

• Release Date: February 14, 2025 (Valentine’s Day)

• Duration: Approximately 4-5 minutes (varies by platform)

• Genre: Downtempo / Balearic / Ambient / IDM / Nu Jazz

• Album: Magic Seeds II (instrumental companion album, track 1 of 10)

• Original Version: “Smoke In The Air” from Magic Seeds (November 8, 2024)

• Producer/Composer: Leifur James

• Engineer: Oli Bayston

• Label: Night Time Stories (catalog: ALN 73II)

• Format: Digital download (320kbps MP3, WAV, FLAC, ALAC, AIFF), streaming

• Total Album Duration: 42 minutes

Leifur James “Smoke In The Air II” Era Artist Details

Artist Background

• Real Name: Leifur James (full name not publicly disclosed)

• Origin: London, England, UK

• Current Base: Lisbon, Portugal (relocated 2023)

• Career Start: Professional releases began 2017, debut album 2018

• Early Training: Started music at age 4 with cello (taught by his mother)

• Additional Instruments: Piano, electronic production, vocals

• Formative Experience: Attended raves under Vauxhall Bridge at age 14, discovered Plastic People club

• Musical Influences: Nina Simone, Talk Talk, DJ Shadow, Massive Attack, Madlib, Aphex Twin, Nils Frahm, Burial

• Label: Night Time Stories (LateNightTales offshoot)

• Spotify Listeners: 535,400+ monthly (as of 2025)

Personnel on “Smoke In The Air II”

• Leifur James: Production, composition, arrangement, Formanta drum machine programming, Mellotron, field recordings, editing

• Leo Taylor: Drums (recorded during London sessions)

  • Member of Floating Points Ensemble

  • Also performs with The Invisible

• Raven Bush: Violin (recorded during London sessions)

  • Member of Speakers Corner Quartet

  • Composer and violinist

• Oli Bayston: Producer, engineer

  • Solo artist as Boxed In

  • Production credits: Kelly Lee Owens, Olivia Dean, Rachel Chinouriri

Album Context (Magic Seeds II)

• Instrumental companion to Magic Seeds (November 2024)

• Released February 14, 2025 on Night Time Stories

• 10 tracks, 42 minutes total duration

• Seven tracks designated “(II)” indicating instrumental versions

• Three tracks appear without “(II)” designation: “Measure Of Mind,” “Lay,” “Room 68”

• James’ statement: Opportunity to showcase production details obscured by vocals

• Highlights: Formanta drum machine crunch, Mellotron textures, field recording layers

• Cover art: Continuation of Jonathan Zawada’s red lightning-root imagery from Magic Seeds

Leifur James Discography

• Singles: “Red Sea” (2017), “Time” (2017)

• A Louder Silence (2018) - Debut album

• A Louder Silence: Remixes (2019) - FaltyDL, Bruce, Coby Sey remixes

• “Wurlitzer” (2019) - Single with Balázs Simon video

• Angel in Disguise (2020) - Second album

• “Sirens” (2021) - Single

• Run - Release date unspecified

• Magic Seeds (November 8, 2024) - Third album

• Magic Seeds II (February 14, 2025) - Instrumental companion

Career Highlights

• BBC Radio 6 Music support: Gilles Peterson, Mary Anne Hobbs, Tom Ravenscroft

• NTS Radio: Young Turks label show

• Worldwide FM: Bradley Zero, Charlie Bones

• Celebrity fans: Actor Cillian Murphy

• US recognition: Pitchfork and KCRW “best new music”

• Live venues: Barbican Hall (sold out, supporting Pantha du Prince and headline), Village Underground, Southbank Centre, Amsterdam Paradiso

• Festivals: Bluedot, The Great Escape, We Out Here, Sundaze, Nova Batida

• Boiler Room: Performed A Louder Silence in full

• Film festival recognition: “Wurlitzer” video nominated for UK Music Video Award

• Publications: Resident Advisor, Pitchfork, Mixmag, DJ Mag, Future Music UK, Electronic Sound, Crack Magazine, Vinyl Factory, The Line of Best Fit

Interesting Facts About “Smoke In The Air II”

The Plastic People Connection and London Underground Lineage

Leifur James’ approach to “Smoke In The Air II” connects directly to his formative experiences at Plastic People, the legendary Shoreditch club that closed in 2015. At just 14 years old, James would attend raves under Vauxhall Bridge, returning home in the freezing morning cold but warmed by “this great warmth of the music culture in London.” Plastic People became his musical education—a venue famous for its Funktion-One sound system and DJs who defied genre boundaries. There, he witnessed Floating Points (whose drummer, Leo Taylor, plays on “Smoke In The Air II”) play jazz records in the middle of electronic sets.

James explicitly wanted A Louder Silence (2018) to capture those “heady nights at London’s long-lost and beloved club Plastic People,” blending IDM and minimalist avant-garde influences with Nina Simone-inspired vocals. The instrumental focus of “Smoke In The Air II” strips away vocals to reveal the sonic architecture that connects to that club legacy—bass-heavy, genre-fluid, designed for deep listening rather than dancefloor functionality. The track’s “slow-burn cinematic sweep” and layered production reflect the patience and attention to sonic detail that Plastic People championed, where sound quality and DJ curation mattered more than commercial accessibility.

Soviet Drum Machines Meet Portuguese Light

The production of “Smoke In The Air II” represents an unlikely fusion: Soviet-era analog drum technology processed in the luminous environment of Lisbon. The Formanta drum machine James highlights in his description of the track was manufactured in the USSR during the 1980s—a quirky, lo-fi alternative to the slicker Roland and LinnDrum units dominating Western production. Its “crunch” provides gritty, imperfect percussion that contrasts with the smooth Mellotron swells and Leo Taylor’s live drumming.

This technological choice reflects James’ broader aesthetic philosophy: embrace imperfection, layer contradictions, refuse to smooth everything into commercial palatability. As he told The Line of Best Fit, moving to Lisbon influenced the final editing: “The light refracts off all the tiles around the city. I wanted to engage with the light again, and celebrate new growth.” The album became “a lighter record than my previous one” because of how James finished it in Lisbon—walking the city’s streets, absorbing the atmosphere, making final production decisions in that reflective environment.

The result is music that lives in multiple spaces simultaneously: London’s underground club darkness and Lisbon’s ceramic-tiled brightness, Soviet analog grit and English violin elegance, improvisational spontaneity and meticulous editing. “Smoke In The Air II” doesn’t resolve these tensions—it celebrates them, creating an instrumental soundscape that critics compared to James Holden’s blissful electronica and the moody pastoral psychedelia of Beak. As The Line of Best Fit noted in their review of Magic Seeds II, this is music “that could work both in open spaces and in dank clubs—as long as there is a smoke machine, of course.”

Common Questions

Q: What is the difference between “Smoke In The Air” and “Smoke In The Air II”? A: “Smoke In The Air II” is the instrumental version of “Smoke In The Air,” released on the companion album Magic Seeds II (February 2025). The original appeared on Magic Seeds (November 2024) with vocals. Leifur James explained that stripping vocals reveals production details like the Formanta drum machine, Mellotron textures, and field recordings that were partially obscured in the vocal version.

Q: What instruments are used in “Smoke In The Air II”? A: “Smoke In The Air II” features Leo Taylor on live drums, Raven Bush on violin, plus Leifur James’ production incorporating Formanta drum machine (Soviet-era analog rhythm box), Mellotron (tape-based keyboard), field recordings, and various electronic textures. The track blends live instrumentation recorded during improvisational sessions with extensive electronic manipulation and layering.

Q: When was “Smoke In The Air II” released? A: “Smoke In The Air II” was released on February 14, 2025 (Valentine’s Day) as the opening track of Magic Seeds II on Night Time Stories label. The original vocal version “Smoke In The Air” was released November 8, 2024 as the opener and lead single from Magic Seeds.

Q: Who is Leifur James and where is he from? A: Leifur James is a London-born experimental electronic producer, composer, and multi-instrumentalist who relocated to Lisbon, Portugal in 2023. He started playing cello at age 4, attended underground London raves at age 14 (particularly the legendary Plastic People club), and has released three studio albums on Night Time Stories: A Louder Silence (2018), Angel in Disguise (2020), and Magic Seeds (2024), plus the instrumental companion Magic Seeds II (2025).

Q: What genre is “Smoke In The Air II”? A: “Smoke In The Air II” blends multiple genres: downtempo, Balearic, ambient, IDM (intelligent dance music), and nu jazz. The track combines UK bass influences from James’ mid-2000s London club years with cinematic production and electronic experimentation. Critics have compared the sound to James Holden, Beak, DJ Shadow, and the atmospheric qualities of Burial’s garage productions.

Tags: #LeifurJames #SmokeInTheAirII #MagicSeedsII #NightTimeStories #Downtempo #Balearic #IDM #NuJazz #PlasticPeople #LisbonMusic #LondonUnderground #FloatingPoints #Instrumental #ExperimentalElectronic

---

Next: The Icelandic post-rock architects who turned silence into symphony. Discover music algorithms overlook.