Jailer

 

Jailer's demo reviews have popped up a bit everywhere online over the past weeks and it's quite funny to see that while everybody agrees that this tape rips, it seems that Jailer's sound recalls very different things to each reviewers depending on their musical tastes and backgrounds. So now I guess it's my turn to add a little more confusion to the upbeat cacophony of the online punk world intelligentsia.

 

But first things first, according to various sources Jailer is one of the newest project of NYC and Philly punks who have a long record of obnoxious noise-making behind them, it even seems that one (the drummer maybe?), or some, of them, was/were involved in Sirkka, a great Finnish-hardcore-infused raw punk band from NYC which released a killer tape in 2020. Despite being obviously very talented, these guys also seem to love secrecy and I've not been able to dig up any first-hand information (congratulations, I usually manage to stalk almost everybody online).

 

 

  So first these guys like it loud and noisy, the guitars got that crushing buzz-saw sound and the deafening crunchy cymbals add the extra ingredient to something that could really fall into the "noise-worship" category. Thankfully the bass sticks out in that mess with a very medium round sound which gives an old-school anarcho punk vibe to the lot. On top of that the vocalist seems to particularly like the typical vocal flow dear to a part of the 80s British anarcho-punk wave (obvious on Vision Zero).

Yes, to me a lot in Jailer is reminiscent to the most "hardcore" bands from the 80s British anarcho-punk movement, I can think of Anti-System, A.O.A or some parts of Conflict's discography even if Jailer adds to that a "noise mayhem approach" closer to what Scandinavia used to offer at the time.

Something else entirely: the most music-loving or film-loving among you will appreciate the surprising reference to that good old Richard Wagner on Sexual Janitor.

 

 Whatever Jailer will make you think of, it's obvious that these guys' four songs totally rip. It got that in-your-fucking-face energy mixed with great songs structures and perfect punk vocals which make you wanna pogo AND listen to that shit on your way to work in the morning while you're being crushed in the packed subway wagon. The only thing that bothers me a bit is the tendency to play noisy but annoying guitar solos here and there (especially on Human Momentum), thankfully it doesn't reach the "Metal-inspired threshold" so it's still fine.

Let's hope that, not like Sirkka, something else will come out very soon...

Oh yes, of course I agree too... what the fuck is this cover artwork?

N,J'Oi!

You can listen to Jailer on Rien à Faire #31.

 

 

 

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