Album Review- Jim Bob

 One of my favorite albums is “1992: The Love Album by Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine

That duo was part of a scene that at times was called Grebo or the bigger umbrella of Brit-pop and Alt Rock or called Dance rock or Funk Rock and generally lumped in with bands like the WonderStuff, Ned’s Atomic Dustbin, Pop will Eat Itself and Gaye Bikers on Acid

Now, while there seems to still be a strong contingent of Neds fans online, it is likely the hair, the band names and the clothes probably kept this scene from hitting the heights of modern day nostalgia

James Robert Morrison (dba Jim Bob), the singer for Carter USM has now recorded 12 solo albums.

I hadn’t given him much thought until his career had a bit of a resurrection with 2020s Pop Up Jim Bob.

That album was so enjoyable to me. It seemed like little character studies. Whereas 1992: The Love Album had clever wordplay, the same level of intelligence held intact, a bit of Blur and a bit of Bowie, but the focus was catching the spirit of the current times- cancel culture, Gun violence, internet society and so on.

Jim Bob’s next two records were 2021s Who Do We Hate Today and the recently released Thanks for Reaching Out. The three albums form a trilogy of sorts covering similar ground, featuring similar striking artwork by Mark Reynolds and the same backing band with Terry Edwards (Gallon Drunk, PJ Harvey) and Kate Arnold (Fear of the Forest). Each around the old school record time of under 40 minutes.

The thing about the trilogy is that they all occupy the same headspace. At the same time, they don’t suffer repetition.

To the extent that I don’t know if I have a favorite or if I would rank them 1 to 3 the same way from day to day. Each has great moments, each has a certain flow and each is a great listening experience. The only drawback of the third is that it isn’t as surprising as listening to the first for the first time.

Here, the subjects are Elon Musk, police brutality, Doomsday preparing survivalists, and toxic masculinity.

These are some of my favorite records of the last five years. Not for everyone of course but worth a listen