BANDS THAT SOUND OLD: Issue 1

Right. So, I ended up taking a wee bit longer to get revved up and in posting form (a few cracks of the whip from our legendary Domineditor Whitney helped) but I suppose I was waiting for the spirit to move me.

But move me it has. And by spirit I mean one of the best releases I’ve heard all year. And by one of the best releases I’ve heard all year I mean the self-titled debut of Atlanta’s own Gentleman Jesse And His Men.

It is easily the finest guitar power-pop record I’ve heard since The Exploding Hearts‘ ragged 2003 masterpiece Guitar Romantic. The Gentleman shares a great many of the Hearts’ influences, wearing Nick Lowe, the Buzzcocks, and the Only Ones proudly on his sleeve.

Drawing deeply from ’70s punk and the Modern Lovers, Gentleman Jesse and His Men covers some well-worn thematic ground: unrequited loves, snarky come-downs on scene-queens (as on “Attention”), and that special kind of idleness that comes not from inate laziness but from there not being anything worth doing. 

But such ground is well-worn for a reason, and there will always be fresh ways to cover it and hooky-ass hooks to help it all go down.

For anyone who loves the ‘Cocks, the Exploding Hearts, Busy Signals, or a damn fine power-pop record in general, Gentleman Jesse and His Men comes highly recommended.

Your assignement is to check out http://www.myspace.com/gentlemanjesse.