Trampolene frontman takes on a second job away from the indie rock of his band and puts his guitar away and embraces a genre removed from the trad set up of a rock n roll record. After seeing a modern musician (if you call a laptop a musical instrument) make music that causes you to feel something can be a beautiful thing. Music causes many different emotions be it strong or something that just washes over you causing nothing more than a sigh. Some performers need to keep evolving and trying new routes to push themselves as creators within their chosen wheel house be them musicians or actors or painters – whatever challenging oneself is not for everyone and often doesn’t even work but hell we’re only here once and it’s a relatively short time so why not have a good time. Jack Jones has always done poetry and never shied away from including it live at his band’s rock show and to be fair the audience has always embraced it and often loved it repeating every word and it always makes people happy and the rooms are full of big shit eating grins so why not hang up the guitar embrace modern recording techniques and sounds and use it as the back up to your poetry. To be fair I was quite sceptical when I first heard the MO for this record but having lived with it for a couple of weeks and had the pleasure of playing it on headphones in Jack’s hometown of Swansea where a lot of these songs come to life and the searing heat of inner city Barcelona on a break it made me smile often and at time certain lyrics had me laugh out loud and the cheeky turn of phrase from Jacks mischievous brain.
The record drifts from soundscape to soundscape as Jack indulges in his poetry and you don’t have to know the ins and outs of where his words are coming from just enjoy it for what it is and what it might mean to you it’s pure escapism and for Jack it really works well.
The first pair of videos from the album were quite different from what I was expecting and the opener ‘Make It So’ begins with hushed tones growing into a trippy dreamy journey like a Portishead meets beat poet sound and I like it is a grower for sure and that’s the beauty here. Give in to it and step outside yourself and you might really enjoy it, I did.
‘Breathe’ was the first single I heard and its alternative dark pop and a brave song off a brave record and something which I think has paid off for the young man.
There is a darkness to the words but its always pierced with humour and a cheeky wink and that’s always part of Jack’s charm and it’s a winning formula. Theres an 80s feel to some of it reminding me of when synths became a real deal in the early 80s from the likes of Depeche Mode and Human League. The lyrics to ‘Gladys’ made me laugh.
‘Peaches Out Of Reach’ is an insight into this fella’s head and tells stories of growing up in a small city with its crazy characters. ‘Who Let The Bass Pump Through The Floor’ is an earworm that could fill an Ibiza foam party with bucket hats and glow sticks with Kevin and Perry on the decks and Jack prowling the floor like a Welsh Ian Brown pumping his fist in the air regaling his story of house parties. ‘MDMA Day’ had me chuckling along and I’m sure Jacks pouring his heart out in this poetry and maybe that honesty is why it works so well.
Some memories of days gone by and mad nights out might have inspired this record and I’m sure it’s one Jack is immensely proud of it’s a curve ball for sure but a welcome day trip from Trampolene and a great accompaniment to his books and day job. Get involved kids and give yourself over to it. Live it, Experience it and enjoy it, it’s only Rock n Roll but not quite as we know it but all the same it’s a lad expressing himself and doing it with style and I like it it’s warm and fuzzy and fuckin with my head and that’s good innit butt.
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