The Jayhawks
Paging Mr. Proust
Reviewed By: Lauren Rosier
The Jayhawks are breath of fresh air in a music industry where superficial pop music and crude hip hop music dominate. However, the band itself is not brand new, having played music since 1985 based out of Minneapolis.
The quartet comprised of Gary Louris, Marc Perlman, Tim O’Reagan, and Karen Grotberg bring elements of Americana, blues, ’70s rock, and folk music into a sound that’s all their own.
On their latest studio album, Paging Mr. Proust, the band shows a commitment to moving forward and future adventures. On the opening track, “Quiet Corners & Empty Spaces,” Louris sings, “The start of a brand new adventure.”
The song is a perfect introduction to the band’s record and the journey it takes you on as you listen to their record through the end. The journey continues with the track “Lost The Summer” – a song that opens with flaring electric guitars and weaves into a solid rock song featuring the almost spoken-word vocals from Louris. I absolutely love the guitars in this track; they stand out and pull together a song that you can imagine would be a complete blast to see live.
“Lovers Of The Sun” is a folksy tune filled with melodic guitars and smooth vocals. Louris sings, “Hey girl, look at what you’ve done / All the ruins, nothing won / Backseats and empty stalls / Collecting numbers never called, never called / Just watch her run / She’s a lover of the sun.”
I love the way the band is able to incorporate different elements of multiple genres into their sound, but still have their own signature sound. The Jayhawks truly have a layered sound and that’s something that I haven’t heard in awhile from any music artist.
“Isabel’s Daughter” is a great example of a solid song that takes me back to some of the music I grew up listening to from my parents – a lot of music from the ’60s and ’70s with an Americana and folk-type vibe. The way they can take elements of a time period in music where it was so influential, but yet still have a modern vibe, is very impressive. It’s timeless.
Perhaps, my favorite track on Paging Mr. Proust is one of the last songs on the 12-song tracklisting, “Lies In Black and White,” where Louris sings about a situation that was reported in the “afternoon paper” and reads about “all the false accusations / about the situation / he allegedly had been through” and all the “lies in black and white.”
This record is truly one of the best that I’ve heard in awhile from a band that I honestly hadn’t heard of prior to this review. With that said, they’ll stay with me for a while. The vocals of Gary Louris partnered with the instrumentation from Perlman, O’Reagan, and Grotberg, create a complete, full-circle musical journey that shines with every listen.
Rating: Iconic
The Jayhawks will be in Philadelphia on June 17th. Info can be found here.
