Ladies and gentlemen, may I present to you the UK’s best new band – Jerry-Built. Ok, that is maybe me getting a little carried away but I’m as excited about this Kingston mob as I was when I first heard Finch. ‘Upstarts’ is a debut EP that crams 23 minutes of sheer brillince on to a shiny compact disc and in my (probably misguided) opinion is the definitive UK record of the last 2 or 3 years. Yes people, this record is simply that good. So good infact that instead of reading this review you should go out and buy it now.
Think The Get Up Kids in a brawl with Hot Water Music, with the Britishness of Hundred Reasons thrown in to break things up and it’s about as accurate, and crude, a description I can give. Taking influence from the likes of Reggie and the Full Effect and many other US ’emo’ bands, Jerry-Built have a fantastic sound that would sit well on the Vagrant Records roster. Each song has a great riff, the dual vocal harmonies of Tim Robson and Andy Myers (who at times trade vocal blows with each other in a manner Tyson and Foreman would be proud) work magnificently and there’s enough melody here to put the new Get Up Kids record to shame. And the best thing about this band is that they’re British and are not only taking the Yanks on at their own game but are beating them to a bloody pulp.
‘Receivers’ is a crunching melodic blast, the vocals bounce off each other opening up into a shiny singalong chorus. Sure to become the band’s live anthem it’s a superb way of opening the album and really sets the tone for things to come. The “they’re talking on receivers” refrain could even be a huge radio hit, such is the potential we are talking about. Pop choruses underlay some crunching guitars and shouty vocals during the verses and while that is not a new style Jerry-Built carry it off with a swagger and confidence that belittles the band’s relative youth. ‘Marriage’ lets Tall Dave show off his keyboard and sampling ‘talents’ and is all the better for having the extra layer of sound. Of course the song itself builds up through the verses into a massive chorus, which is simple yet very effective. The same could be said about ‘Patience’ which is less aggressive and harsh than the previous two songs, but maintains the melody. Again the use of the one lyric, in this case “turn back and walk away,” is another use of a simple but effective middle 8.
‘A is B’ is a favourite of mine, with keyboards, guitars and drums crashing out from all angles and the vocals are aggressive as ever. The song is as crisp and fresh as any other release of its type, a credit to John Hannon’s production skills. Infact the production perfectly suits Jerry-Built’s sound – it’s clean and crisp without becoming too sickly sweet. The gorgeous ‘Near You’ is as cliched lyrically as they come (“I text messages to your phone, I make you a mixtape, I’ll write it in the snow”) but I’m a sucker for a melody and this is nothing short of brilliant. It’s a lighters-in-the-air tug on the heartstrings and is sure to win them many new friends. Again it shows that you don’t have to break the mould and by keeping it simple the band have come up with a song that could even sneak its way onto the Get up Kids‘ opus ‘Something To Write Home About’. And the xylophone effect in the background adds a lullaby-quality effect to the track that simply tops it off. Buy this EP just for this song. ‘You are Yours’ again makes use of every weapon that the band possess, be it driving guitars and an awesome vocal melody – something which the band seem to be able to churn out without any effort at all. The final track, ‘Genus’ maintains the quality of the entire EP, with a trademark vocal battering turning into yet another melodic chorus. The keyboards play a prominent part here as well, leaving you nodding, tapping and singing along.
Firefly Recordings have an absolute gem of a band on their hands here, and while all of the plaudits may well be going to their labelmates in Kids Near Water, Jerry-Built have the arsenal to leave them all trailing in their wake. They’ve already got the beginnings of a solid ‘underground’ fanbase and some national music magazines are beginning to pick up on them. The key to their success is keeping things simple and putting their own twisted slant on a style that is proven to work. It may well be Capdown, Lightyear and Fletcher that (rightly) are getting the plaudits at the moment but this time next year, with a little luck, there’s no reason why Jerry-Built won’t have emulated that success. And if there’s any justice far exceeded it too. They are already making waves, attracted a few famous friends and got on some high profile tours. The future is looking very, very bright indeed. This band really is something to write home about…
Paul