Jollymon
Nobody Knows Who You Are (Elemental Records)
By: Alex Steininger
The Pacific Northwest is filled with great bands from punk, to the well publicized 'grunge', to pop-rock. Jolly Mon is one of those bands helping the music scene in the Northwest become a phenomenon. Their music has it's own classification, post-grunge.Jolly Mon is a three piece out of Eugene, Oregon. Lead by Carey Rich at Bass, vocals, and sometimes guitar, and with a great supporting cast of Mark Blackburn (drums) and Brian Smith (guitar), Jolly Mon is quickly becoming a Northwest favorite. Selling out their local venues like W.O.W. Hall in Eugene, and La Luna in Portland.
Jolly Mon's debut album, "Sailing," has sold over 3,000 copies to date, and continues to burn up the charts in their home region. While their record was tearing up the Northwest charts, Jolly Mon's captivating live shows were earning them roles as the opening act for such bands as Ziggy Marley, Beck, Dick Dale, Blind Melon, and Candlebox. Now Jolly Mon is back with their sophomore release, "Nobody Knows Who You Are."
"Nobody Knows Who You Are" is an intriguing set of work. A seven song album filled with non-stop thumping and pounding on the bass, great acid guitar, and hard hitting (sometimes laid-back) drums back up the weird, and unusual vocals of Carey Rich. The first track on the album is 'is my name.' With lyrics like, "Freedom is my name/I never want to be the same/with you we go," the song is one of the standouts on this album. Next is 'Green on the Ground.' It starts out with a distorted guitar, then the drums come in, and then it all comes together when the bass and vocals enter the song. 'Green on the Ground' also appears on the current CD Compilation from N.A.I.L., and is scheduled to appear on the Winter HTS Magazine Compilation. The next track is 'Rain.' Rain is a song that shows off the writing capability of Jolly Mon. See the faces, see the rain, it's all the same/see the burden remain, like my hands are raised/I can really say my are tied. This soft, laid-back track lets you catch your breath between other, harder tracks on the album. 'Oh no. Not again," is the fourth track on the album. It starts with a thumping bassline, and then you hear the beats of drums and cymbals, and then the guitar comes in to set a mood before the vocals come on. When the vocals do come on, they send you into total illusions, as you really get a feel for this song. Then the softer course comes in, right before going right back to it's regular pace. Face paced Guitar and Bass, combined with the rhythm of the drums, keep 'Capsule' at its faced paced tempo. Soft and twisted vocals line this song to its inner core, while the rough, yet well composed, music in the background sets the whole scenery for the song in your mind. 'The Pilot' is a Psychedelic song. Faced paced vocals collide with a heavy bass, a mixed emotions of guitar, and soft then loud drums filling the background. The last track on "Nobody Knows Who You Are" is 'East.' It starts out with a quick drums and then enters the guitar and bass. Then the vocals enter the song. It ends with just an instrumental theme. No vocals needed to get their message across.
"Nobody Knows Who You Are" was excellently put together by the band. It is a good album, with great musicians backing it up, and with vocals that can make your heart jump or give you goose bumps, this album would be a chart topper if only it was longer. Around twenty-five minutes of music, and only seven songs, this album leaves you wanting more, but not bringing it. You have to put your CD player on constant repeat, or the CD goes by fast. Due to the fact that the CD has only seven songs I would have to give this CD a B. It is good, but there is always ways to improve, and more songs would have been the best place to start.
