With a quivering mushy voice, cut up backing percussion and bass, and smooth romantic strings, Rob Jacobs' Tom Foolery Tour Compilation makes for some smoothly fucked up listening. Nothing that will fuck your mind up too hard, the songs on the album set a mood of light chill with a slightly uneasy tension.
At first I listened to an earlier album of his called So Many Eyes, which featured much more acoustic guitar with pretty Brazilian chords and less percussion, but similarly styled strings and vocals, as well as general quirkiness. Then I realized that he had a newer album and was pleased to hear the music branch out a lot more, take more chances, and whip out more percussive sounds. And here this site we are always looking for music of such demented qualities.
The vocals are really demented. At first I thought they were kind of hip, but gradually they became simultaneously eerie, tense, a bit mental; all the vibrato, the throaty absurdness, the wide leaps and rolling melodies. They pervade the album, except for one instrumental track, "when the police." They carry the music, and without them the music wouldn't be half as wtf.
I assume this music was home-recorded, but Rob definitely went for a very clean production that is dry but lush with the arrangement of sounds. Another choice I assume was intentional was the clipping distortion on the louder parts. Definitely very careful arrangements which show off not only harmonic modulation trickery but also some playful color and cartoonish left turns. Many sounds appear and disappear. Still there is an overall consistency to the feel of the songs. Particular WTF highlights include the vacuum sound at the end of "black fly in my left eye" and the freak out flutes at the end of "it's spring again."
Then go to the music section, leave a comment, and let Rob know, hey your music is fucked up, thanks for sharing it with the world.
-jeemobon
Further discussion on this release and artist can be found HERE.
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