jerkwaterreviews
 

The Brooklyn threesome Jerkwater offers solid rhythmic pop augmented by occasional fancy stylings on a hollow-body electric guitar.

-The New Yorker

Longwave is part of New York's decent pop army, but Jerkwater comes in a notch higher--the brooklyn trio's Love and Latitude (plus) just strings one simple pop hook after another. (CMJ show review)

-Mike Wolf, Time Out

Love and Latitude, the debut full length CD from Brooklyn-based indie rock band Jerkwater, is an exceedingly tuneful mix of wistful, melancholy jangle pop with a distinctly '80s-era Athens, GA, flair. In fact, this record could easily stand proudly in the company of the best work from Let's Active, Guadalcanal Diary, or Love Tractor. Unlike the aforementioned bands, however, Jerkwater has no trace of punk angst, and the group's breezy sound and clever, smirking lyrics prevent it from becoming a nostalgia act. Sonically, the album is exquisitely airy and transparent; producer/engineer Jacques Cohen (Mercury Rev) does a beautiful job of capturing Jerkwater's nuances. The recordings here are of a gentle nature, only really rocking full throttle on "Call Waiting" (which wouldn't sound out of place on a Smithereens record) and the Archers of Loaf-like "Heart Attack Station." Overall, Love and Latitude is an extremely promising effort from a band that has managed to inject new life into an old genre with generous helpings of craft, wit, and style.

-Pemberton Roach, All Music Guide

Jerkwater, one of Brooklyn's finest powered-down trios, brings the quiet in bucolic post-shoegaze style, a trait that works to their advantage.

-David Sprague, Village Voice

This Brooklyn trio crafts earnest indie-pop, letting guitars go soft and sparkling around mid-range melodies. Their latest, Love and Latitude (Plus), is a glimmering glimpse of heartbreak and good intentions gone awry. Despite their seemingly abrasive moniker, Jerkwater is in fact precocious and soft-spoken, the school wallflower with designs on the head cheerleader.

-Holly Mack-Ward, Philadelphia Weekly

Sturdy jangle pop outfit from Brooklyn, they rise above the mundane with funny/sad/dark lyrics, subtle but effective vocals and the odd flourish of cello and harmonica.

-Jeff Clark, Stomp and Stammer, Atlanta, GA

Based out of the hip Williamsburg neighborhood in Brooklyn, NY, melodic indie-rock trio Jerkwater has been steadily gaining notice in the Northeast for its melancholy, glimmery style of pop. Gotham critics have compared the band to Velvet Underground, The Replacements and Mercury Rev. The trio - comprised of guitarist Chris Bowers ([ex] Cicada Sings), bassist Steve Christensen and drummer John Connell - is currently touring in support of its debut full-length, Love And Latitude (Plus), a 13-song collection engineered by Jacques Cohen (Silver Apples, Mercury Rev, Bright).

 -Ballard Lesemann, Flagpole Magazine, Athens, GA

 

Every now 'n' again, I come across a band - a "rock"-type band - that's actually a pleasure to listen to again and again, a disc that sounds better with each repeated listen. The W'burg trio Jerkwater have fashioned such a disc, their debut Love And Latitude. It has all the good points of such  jangle-pop and twee-rock such as Heavenly, Go Sailor, Love Tractor, Miracle Legion, Let's Active, The High Llamas and The Mayflies USA but they wisely avoid most of the pitfalls (sugary-ness, samey-ness, arch-ness, occasional wimpy-ness).

The opener "Crowd Pleaser" gently shimmers like a lazy summer day and has a great "Dear Prudence"-style chorus with pensive, gossamer heartfelt harmonies right out of the Beach Boys' Sunflower. "Ballad Of Johnny Rock" and "Drag City Blues" have that sweet tra-la-la not-quite-corrupted innocence-bounce of Heavenly and The Softies. But the tart, mordant lyrics, a nice sense of dynamics and their irresistible sense of melody keep things from getting too cutesy-precious. And they remember to rock, too: "Heart Attack Station" and "Call Waiting" come across like a cross between Cheap Trick and Sugar at their respective peaks. This is most definitely a keeper, some of the niftiest, most memorable pop/rock since Bibi Farber's Firepop and The dBs' Repercussion.

-Mark Keresman, Waterfront Week, Brooklyn, NY


back to home