Stolen Jars
Kept
Reviewed by: Ziggy Merritt
Folk music has become another overcrowded classification begging to be remade into something less exclusive. There’s a preconceived notion of folk as exclusively pastoral and acoustic but in the case of Stolen Jars in their most recent release, Kept, those same pastoral roots are just as well accented by guitar loops and ambient noise. This mixture “recorded by Cody Fitzgerald in various bedrooms”, as taken from the album’s credits on their Bandcamp, blends well despite a few stumblings.
Those very stumblings are often the vocal stylings, with much of my gripe directed at the somewhat flat delivery of Cody Fitzgerald when paired with the robust character of partner, Molly Grund. The two opening tracks of the album, “Waves” and “Kept” feature the pair in harmony though Grund’s voice shines through while dulling the impact of Fitzgerald’s. The following tracks then alternate between Grund and Fitzgerald, erasing much of this impaired distinction. “Another November”, under the vocal direction of Grund, quickly becomes the highlight of Kept while the late addition of “Folded Out” does its best to follow-suit with the melodic loop of the guitar and brass melding with the airy delivery of Fitzgerald.
These loops of guitar tracks propel Kept while the structure of ambient noise keep it singular and interesting. At times it reminds of a similar experimentation in unorthodox layering by electronic musician, Baths while in others the trading off of vocals and even the very delivery are more reminiscent of the chamber pop stylings of Stars. Stolen Jars’ own signature style comes through in the quickened, yet light-hearted pace of Kept. Each track feels like a there-and-back again journey into secluded hamlets and stark cityscapes. The DIY bedroom-folk approach additionally comes through as genuine and personal. While Kept may occasionally suffer from saccharine lyrics and initially flat vocal delivery, its attempt at success in overcoming the genre trappings of folk is just that; successful.
Rating: Bad-Ass
