Now
that's a long way to play a gig, a very long way. Hailing from as south as they
come, The Isle Of Wight's newest (and perhaps only) rock n’ roll band, Jackson
Analogue played to a rafter-packing audience at Newcastle’s Digital last
night. Bashing out songs from their soon to be released EP 'West of Here',
the quintet provided an old school, full-throttle assault with lead-out track,
‘Out Of Reach’ to a crowd that was literally tappin’ and a buzzin’ to the new
Jackson Analogue beat. ‘Course it had a bit of the MC5s about it, but it was a
solid enough introduction, and like all of their songs that evening it had that
quarter-pounder rhythm section you could have lifted from just about any other
garage rock band currently worth their weight in denim. It was, in all fairness,
about as original as a gag from 'Everybody Loves Raymond' but somehow it did the
business. By the looks of it, the 200 or so strong audience that were there,
were there for ‘Stone Love’, a weekly student night in Newcastle that packs in
more punters than you can throw at a large dartboard, and although it's an ideal
setting for a new band to gain a couple more notches on the post of their gently
swelling fanbase, the clichéd ‘had girl, lost girl’ dialogue thrown-up by ‘Disco’
has heads drifting to other things; like whose turn it is to go to the bar and
get the drinks in – an issue that puts a question-mark on Jim Home’s songwriting
and his decision to lend his throaty Chris Cornell/Mark Lanegan vocals to dreary
acoustic ballads. Most large, bearded men can cut a commanding stage-presence,
but having an audience glued to your performance through abject fear alone is
a poor substitute for entertainment, as arresting as it all is. The basic kick
beats and limp-wristed snare activity put together by brother Rob fails lift things
either, inviting us on a one-way trip to boredom. But hey, that’s what happens
when you try to play acoustic songs like Led Zeppelin but end up sounding like
a boyband. The most impressive song performed tonight is 'His Red Hand',
a throbbing, vivacious stormer whose pounding ‘Mars Volta’ mannerisms goes down
well with the now very drunk and hyper audience. Big fellas, big guitars, big
sound, big time. And by this stage, buoyed on by the crowd, the energy from the
band is electric. End result? A song that should be a mainstay on their set list
for a very long time to come. The only real challenge for the listener
tonight, however, is the strangely titled, 'Moody Man Left', providing a great
name for a socialist jazz saxophonist on the one hand and a dead-ringer for Radiohead
on the other. Some brilliantly layered Hammond from ‘the beast’ and some intimidating
guitar work leading naturally to a big build whose crescendo simply fades before
it ever has a chance to explode. It fizzles out and we’re left frustrated, crying
off into the night at the thought of what could have been. What should have been.
With a big tour and the Isle Of Wight festival appearance ahead, Jackson
Analogue desperately need to find more original, thought-provoking material or
unfortunately they could see themselves fall by the wayside, ending up on a rock
and roll scrap-heap that they have the big fat, burly potential, at least, to
avoid. Relevant sites:
http://www.jacksonanalogue.com
Matt Diner for Crud Magazine 2006©
 |
|
| 01/06 Morning After Girls Interview
01/06 The Roger Sisters Interview
01/06 The Spinto Band Interview
01/06 The Longcut Interview
01/06 Union of Knives Interview
01/06 7/7 July Bombings London
01/06 Adem / Tunng - Live - West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds
01/06 Beach Boys - Pet Sounds - 40th Anniversary Deluxe CD / DVD
01/06 Broken Social Scene - London Astoria
01/06 Camden Crawl 2006
01/06 Editors - LIve - Brixton Academy
01/06 Elliott Kennedy - Song Meanings
01/06 Four Day Hombre Interview
01/06 Gram Parsons - Fallen Angel DVD
01/06 Hot Chip Live - LIve - Caberte Volatire - Edinburgh
01/06 Jackson Analogue, Digital, Newcastle
01/06 Latitude Festival, Henham Park, Beccles, Suffolk
01/06 Liam Frost - Live - Cockpit, Leeds
01/06 Little Man Tate, Cockpit, Leeds
01/06 Monty Python Remastered Collection
|  | 01/06 New Pornographers / Spoon - Live - London Koko
01/06 NME Shows 2006
01/06 Orange Lights - Carling Academy, Newcastle
01/06 Protokoll - Live - Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh
01/06 Shout Out Louds - Live - Leeds, Cockpit
01/06 Airlines, Flights, Terror Plot July 2006
01/06 The National - Brixton Academy, London
01/06 Wireless Festival 2006
January 2001
July - August 2001
September - October 2001
November - December 2001
January - March 2002
April - July 2002
August - December 2002
January - March 2003
May - August 2003
November 2003
January - March 2004
April - September 2004
October - December 2004
January - March 2005
April - December 2005
January - August 2006
September - December 2006
January - September 2007
October - December 2007
| | |
| |
