I'm back after a long and miserable exam period! Of course it had to come with a review of some sort and I've been to a few gigs since my last post and listened to a lot of new stuff to keep me going through five miserable Law exams. Fortunately, Tigers Jaw's Charmer deserves a mention right here, right now.
For quite a while I've been anticipating Charmer. Though I admit I hadn't even looked at the tracklisting, I'm really glad I didn't because after looking on Spotify to see that tracks "Hum" and "Cool" from the Hum 7" had been included- re-vamped, electric and slightly less lo-fi - I'm really really pleased. What an absolute delight. It seems since previous releases Two Worlds and the S/T, Tigers Jaw have managed to convince me that they're not that band who yeah, used to annoy me a little bit. I wasn't into those sorts of emo droney vocals a while back but luckily saccharine harmonies and quaint piano runs have had me giving in. Charmer is luckily an instant love, especially its title track which is somewhat mysterious sound-wise with a simple running bassline before kicking in with crashing drums, distorted guitar riffs and that very typical Tigers Jaw organ setting on keys. "I Envy Your Apathy" sounds exactly as the title would suggest - plenty of what I'm assuming is the whammy pedal or just a shit ton of vibrato, encouraging its listener to feel a little more than apathy. "Divide" is terrifically 90s with a supercool guitar solo chucked in at around the 2:30 mark. My definite favourite is "Teen Rocket". As soon as it began I actually went "awwwh" - just so simple in terms of chord changes, and vocally soothing with Brianna's top notes introduced half way through. Yummy. It's such a shame that Charmer feels about ten minutes long because I want a lot more from this hugely improved Jaw of the Tiger. After missing their tour last year, I'm eager for a return to the UK!
I've just ordered Charmer from Banquet Records on 12" LP in any variant (there's also a green variant) to see what I get, coming soon.
Edit: I've just noticed the insane amount of Twin Peaks references in this album. I'm really impressed by this (or just a massive fucking hipster).
