Jack O' The Clock - How Are We Doing and Who Will Tell Us?

SKU JOTC 002
"Jack o’the Clock are an unbelievably great band, Damon Waitkus is an extraordinarily courageous composer, and this is some of the freshest and most surprising music I’ve heard since, well, since their first record. Hallelujah!"-Fred Frith

That's really some praise and should make even the most jaded of you give this a glance. The band was sent my way by Scott Brazieal, ex Cartoon, and I was interested in what I heard even before I saw that quote! The band call themselves 'majestic junk folk' and that's a pretty funny but not inaccurate description for a band who blend folk music and experimental music together in a way that sometimes is a bit reminscent of some aspects of Alec K. Redfearn and the Eyesores, but folkier and even more song-oriented, while just as exploratory - albeit in a 'gentler' way. The line up / instruments used get the general feeling across:
Jordan Glenn - drums, percussion, accordion / Jason Hoopes - basses, voice, piano / Kate McLoughlin - bassoon, voice, flute, recorder, percussion / Emily Packard - 5 string and baritone violins, viola, banjo, psaltery, melodica, musical saw / Damon Waitkus - voice, guitar, hammer dulcimer, banjo, piano, pianet, flute, ukelin, percussion, production.

"Jack O’ The Clock brings a quietly giddy sort of energy to the intersection of American folk songwriting and experimental music. The group's sound, a jangly mix of concert-hall agility, acoustic rock drive, and junk shop scouring, is characterized by tight vocal harmonies and intricate arrangements for unusual combinations of instruments made possible by the varied musical experience and multi-instrumentalism of its five members, who have played everything from new music to art metal to fingerstyle folk to free improvisation, sometimes in the same concert. Jack O' The Clock's recordings go beyond the group's live sound to incorporate bits of on-location percussion, found sounds, clandestinely recorded monologues, city noise, and various birds and insects, as well as a number of guest musicians and singers. This is a band entranced by and dedicated to songs, which it crafts with resolute attention to voice, melody, and storytelling. These songs are embodiments of the small, magisterial, inane, inspired, and pedestrian voices of everyday people and staticky news reports filtered through a string of sleepless nights. Your weird neighbors and relatives squawking back at you at 5AM."

Anway, this is very highly recommended.

You can hear their music here






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  • LabelJOTC
Your Price $11.00
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