Jet Black Alley Cat — [The Black Era] EP (5/22/20)
This is my first full dive into a release from this alt-pop/rock group from Nashville.
The underground group has a couple of short projects under their belt and this latest batch is their shortest group of tracks yet. It’s just three songs with two interludes.
The five guys in JBAC like to dress up for their promo shoots and sport a vintage look not only in appearance but in their music as well.
Their vintage, or retro, appearance may be a bit unique but the sound, of course, isn’t anything new. It seems that more music than not holds some sort of 80s influence to it these days and you can definitely feel some Vice City vibes on this.
You feel it almost immediately with the opening guitar notes on “Ex Lover Syndrome.” It’s that very familiar high strung guitar that sets the scene for a montage of a summer night out in Miami. There’s no sunlight in this song. It’s dark, driven, and, while flashy, it’s only artificial light.
If that sounds like a bad thing, it’s not. These guys have that retro alt-rock taste but they share the emo pop-rock appeal of bands like Emarosa and The Band CAMINO.
What these bands have in common is a very polished sound, a retro influence, and lyrics that can appeal to the heartbroken emo kid in all of us.
It’s youthful music that hits on leftover feelings, tough times, and longing for the past. “Ex Lover Syndrome” weighs the good and the bad of hooking up with an ex while “Fight XVIII” (2018?) takes on a more aggressive edge and drops the lovesick tones. It seems to look at a woman fighting for success, overcoming a lot of shit along the way. I’m not sure if it’s meant to point out certain struggles focused towards women…it’s a song anyone can take something from.
Closer “Rewind” is the nostalgic track. It immediately sets up a melancholic tone with its dreamy atmosphere that picks up into a strong walking beat. It’s a song of reflection and the desire to do it all again.
The song looks back on happy memories while admitting to a stagnant present. There’s not much of a silver lining to the song. Instead of heeding the advice to get out of the house and take a drive, vocalist Joe Wilkinson says he’d “rather slam on the breaks/Put a pause and a space in the time/Then rewind.”
Side note: The opening children laughs make me think of MGMT’s “Kids” every time.
Upon the EP’s release, the band said “this is not a record, but a moment in time…the darkest period of our lives.”
The three full songs don’t really dive into any particular incident that would explain what made things so dark but the interludes do suggest heartbreak was involved.
Both have a runtime of exactly 2:04. “*unrealistic love/us.wav” has a starry, spacious atmosphere..almost empty. It questions if there's any hope for the relationship and Wilkinson sounds torn considering “What happens if I just give up on your love?”
“mexico.wav” almost seems like the follow-up, and it doesn’t sound like a happy ending. Over light, almost beachy guitar, it has Wilkinson watching his love leaving on a flight to Mexico. The song fades away with repeats of “As I watch you move on,” entailing the end of said relationship.
So, to finish, it’s a sure-to-please EP for fans of emotionally strung alternative pop-rock.
