#21 on the 2022 Bacon Top 31 — Jockstrap
I Love You Jennifer B by Jockstrap
What sort of music do you hear in your head when you learn a band is named “Jockstrap?” Well, you’re wrong. Jockstrap is the brainchild of English duo Georgia Ellery and Taylor Skye, and they sound pretty much exactly the opposite of what you’d expect with that name.
Their sound is a bit tough to pin down. Ellery sings, and plays a mix of guitar and string in various places across the album. Her vocals are beautifully breathy, clear as day, as if she’s lying next to you in the grass, singing directly into your ear while the sun dances across your faces. Then Skye’s electronics come screaming in, all heavy beats, unapproachable melodies, and playfully tweaked samples. At least that’s what the first three songs sound like. But much like the weather of my native Oklahoma, if you don’t like what you’ve got, just stick around because it’s fixin’ to change. Pitchfork said of their chaotic soundscape that the band “is still rummaging through a trunk of masks.” Feels apropos.
Ellery and Skye met as students of the vaunted Guildhall School of Music & Drama in London. After putting out a handful of well-regarded EPs from 2018-2020, they were able to gel long enough to assemble a full LP, their debut I Love You Jennifer B. “Glasgow,” featured in the video above, with its easy listening guitar and strings playfully dancing together throughout is likely the most universally approachable song on the album. Of the song, Skye said it “is our coming of age, moving forward, long-distance, traveling, beautiful bosk, wonderful thicket song.” “Concrete Over Water” (click for video) is another personal favorite, and so, so loverly.
If those are too “normal” for you, check out the video for “Greatest Hits,” which feels like a throwback to the 90s. The video, which features a fictional trial between two aging musicians, is quite fitting with its Night Court vibes. And then there’s the fourth video from the album, for their song “50/50” — an industrial sounding, dance-beat driven song better suited for the tweaker kids on the dance floor.
Jockstrap’s sound is all over the place, but that doesn’t mean it’s poorly done. This is a stellar debut, front to back, and I encourage you to not give up on it if you don’t find what you’re looking for at first. The payoff is worth it.
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22. Too Much to Ask by Cheekface
23. Dripfield by Goose
24. Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You by Big Thief
25. And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow by Weyes Blood
26. NOT TiGHT by DOMi & JD BECK
27. Preacher’s Daughter by Ethel Cain
28. Live at KEXP, vol. 10 by Various Artists
29. All You Need Is Time by Daisy the Great
30. Cool It Down by Yeah Yeah Yeahs
31. CAPRISONGS by FKA twigs
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