Hollywood Blood Capsules Review
by Joshua Glazer
Ann Arbor's Jaks, along with Morsel and Tiger 100,
created a punk-edged math rock scene that rivaled anywhere else in the
country. While they certainly had the right chops, running bass and
screeching guitar that cut with angular precision against the maelstrom
of drum beats, the true brilliance of Jaks was in their persona and
performance. Like the resident band of a haunted house, they explored
the macabre in a cartoonish style. Singer Katrina (no last names given)
opened shows by bursting fake blood packets strapped underneath her
tuxedo shirt. Rumor had it that drummer Shawn was studying to be a
mortician. Jaks only album, Hollywood Blood Capsules, held up to their
live shows. Lyrics like "I slither and sedate and royal in the mire"
capture the black magic in abstract poetics while the riffs on "Cock of
the Walk" stumble like the undead slowly lurching out of the graveyard.
But the true terror comes on the albums highlight "Fidge Cake and
Pismire," with its "hellhounds running at your heels" drum assault.
Though never achieving the notoriety of their Chicago contemporaries
Trenchmouth or Baltimore's Candy Machine, a Jaks CD in your collection
is the ultimate proof of cool for those who were there.
Tracklist
| 1 | Dumbwaiter | 3:33 | |
| 2 | Black Paper | 1:58 | |
| 3 | Cock Of The Walk | 2:23 | |
| 4 | The Conversation Lags | 2:05 | |
| 5 | Spit Mudd | 3:22 | |
| 6 | Del Chimneys | 2:30 | |
| 7 | Spider | 2:29 | |
| 8 | Fidgecake And Pismire | 1:46 | |
| 9 | Merrily The Gore | 2:28 | |
| 10 | Master P | 2:30 | |
| 11 | Shake | 3:15 |
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