Junk Parlor
Primary URL: https://www.junkparlor.com/
I like the way some people are ironic about their lives, and I like the way some musicians can take absolutely depressing and dark lyrics and set them to antirely cheerful and careless music. I admire such a quality as the sense of humor and marvel at the ability of people to laugh at the whole existence and at themselves. To me, these people have figured it all out and know that nothing is really important, life is for living, and every experience just asserts that you are alive, which is a great blessing itself. When you come to this realization, every time you feel pain, you no longer try to fix it and find out what is wrong with you, but just exclaim: “WOW! I can feel pain! I am alive!” And it makes you happy instead. This is the first train of thought that arouse, when I had heard the single of Junk Parlor’s Mick Jagger’s Heart.
This gypsy punk/junk rock band, based in San Francisco, California, consists of the vocalist and rhythm guitarist Jason Vanderfold, who also plays the acoustic banjo; the lead guitarist Jimmy Grant; the drummer and cajon player Rt Goodrich and the bass player Tim Bush. The quartet blends a number of different and, at first sight, disjoint genres of music, producing unique and original tracks, which become manifestations of Junk Parlor’s vision of life.
“Doctor, won’t you, please, tear it out and place it in a jar next to Mick Jagger’s heart” – this sounds almost like a screenplay of a horror movie, where Freddy Krueger and Frankenstein are the main figures; but not in the song, where it comes out as a reassuring statement. This contrast makes this song so cool. Cool and laid back.
Light and organic instrumental, perfectly tight and all-sufficient, shows how true music is neither about noisiness and volume of sound, nor about excessive bells and whistles. All the band members have had an extensive experience in music and they are able to produce a remarkable song, which will be simple, facile and gentle, yet it will get ahold of you, and you’ll have a hard time figuring out what exactly made you so fascinated with it. But we all know, that simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. The best patterns and happy middle grounds were found out a long time back. All is left to do to create something of value is trying different variations and combinations of sounds and beats, which will only prove that you don’t have to shout to be heard. Junk Parlor have done it with their single Mick Jagger’s Heart, and they are heard perfectly well.
It’s a soft, unhackneyed song, which gives nimble-minded, genuine and creative musicians away. The upbeat and rhythmical melody is very catchy, Jason Vanderfold’s vocals are peculiar and rememberable, I can almost hear him smile, while he sings about his heartaches that make him want somebody to tear his heart out. Probably, this smile is that inscrutable thing that makes this track so appealing.
BANDCAMP: https://junkparlor.bandcamp.com/
Review by Anastasia Shanueva