JJ72 - JJ72 > Reviews > From Album Number I...

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Average
Lyrics	Standard
Quality and consistency of tracks	A couple of weak links
How does it compare to the artist's other releases	Good
Value for Money	Satisfactory

Advantages:	Simple effective songs, mix of soft and gentle to loud and uplifting
Disadvantages:	Slow in places, no backing vocals from Hilary

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

What JJ72 stands for is debatable. Janis Joplin as an influence? 72 being the weight at the time of her demise? Unfortunately JJ72 have broken down during the summer of 2006 having been around for over a decade. An indie rock band from Ireland, JJ72 were known to be Mark Greaney, Fergal Matthews and Hilary Woods, who would leave after the second album. She would be replaced but JJ72 never got around to releasing a planned third album. This self-titled debut was released on the 28th of August, 2000.

Mark Greaney writes all the songs, plays the guitars and sings in the band. His songs are usually composed with a handful of obvious chord voicings, much strummed on his guitar. Lead guitar work is sparse; only the opening track contains a guitar solo, although he'll use the occasional effects pedal in his playing outside of the familiar clean-to-distorted tone switch. This formula would be evident in a number of the singles lifted from this album.

Nirvana is clearly an influence here, a band who made a real impact on Mark towards music. The music is not as direct though, with the switch being from the soft and gentle to the uplifting and loud. Mark uses his lyric tenor voice well here, breaking into his falsetto voice only when he needs so as to avoid taking away from the power behind his voice when he is singing the higher notes. As you can imagine, these are frequently used to allow Mark to add to the power behind numerous choruses, if not dominate them.

His close friend Fergal Matthews plays the drums, with Hilary Woods on the bass. Both get the job steadily done with neither dominating proceedings. It would be nice if Hilary Woods lended her voice for some backing vocals here so as to give it that extra bit of texture.

The album begins with the single 'October Swimmer' which, despite it's gloomy opening lyric "the dreams of dying mothers" over quiet guitar, is carefully built up before being launched out there to rock, showing the quiet and loud of JJ72. I feel it's a great way to start the album, although I found the three note arpeggio throughout the loud part repetitive.

What follows is sure to be less accessible, 'Undercover Angel' is: it's a working of the aforementioned formula but it's another track I like and features some nice build-up. I love the way Mark's detached phasing of the vocals is punctuated by the crashes of the cymbals during the chorus, only to return first time around to the verse in a dream-like sequence. 'Oxygen', a single like the opener but notably with the string arrangements, sees further neat build-up by means of alternating jangly chords. It's chorus is loud and uplifting describing what I feel is an all-conquering love being invincible. Another great single choice.

'Willow', is a break from the loud, a slow and gentle piece moved along by beautiful string arrangements which keep up the strong start to the album. The next song 'Surrender' doesn't quite give this up, but shows another side to Mark's voice during the chorus which again is treated to some neat build-up. Another single follows, 'Long Way South' stands out for it's high-tempo booms of a computer drum machine right from the go, giving the album an injection of pace. As well as the scratchy and stuttering delayed guitars, there is even a brass instrument solo here!

'Snow' is the last single and unsurprisingly, a return to the quiet and loud, another effective song. The band is then broken down as the next two songs feature Mark and a guitar. 'Broken Down' is an interesting offering with the voice and guitar pure and naked for all to hear, their notes made to match each other at times in a delicate way. 'Improv' sees effective use of Mark's singing switching between an octave but the guitar work is not so special.

Next is 'Not Like You', written in 3/4 timing, the combination of Mark's soft vocal delivery with twinkling guitars and glockenspiel, swaying bass notes, careful starts and stops make for a nice cute song. 'Algeria', possible single material, incooperates claps and tribal beats to get involved with, through to it's self-intuitive chorus of seasons, "Spring it dies, summer arrives, summer dies, autumn arrives... forever and ever" before launching into a frenzy of squeaks and noise through slide guitar for it's break.

The album ends with my pick of this album, 'Bumble Bee'. From the start, the quiet backwards stroked chords with it's roots humming are met by the soft voice of Mark, only for both to die out, and you know what comes next. The quiet loud formula is wheeled out for the last time, it's build-up is steady but the chorus? Loud and tense, Mark's vocal delivery is fierce, the bass and drums in full flow, it rocks with anger! Taken further, it continues to rock, ascending riffs peaking, the ghostly cries of Mark then you can imagine this to be a brilliant song to finish. Unfortunately the band are no longer.

This must be the only album I've bought where I hadn't listened to the band before my purchase. It was likely I came across them through other bands, so I took a chance with it. I enjoy this album, I like the mix of songs, they are simple and effective, I find myself singing a lot to the quiet loud ones. I feel the singles are a decent showing of what to expect on this album, the album is slow in places though and the way the lyrics are presented in the inlay, there is no punctuation and capital letters which surely isn't good for me!