I think most people would agree music is a visceral experience. It’s more than that, though. Sometimes the music moves you, and other times it makes you move. Los Angeles’ Mike Jacoby mostly writes and records in the latter style, and sticks to those strengths in his new album, The Long Haul. His previous three releases were primarily solo performances, with him taking the helm on most of the instruments. He started performing with a couple of steady wingmen in the Long Beach Calling timeframe, and they’ve joined him in the studio for this project.
One of the songs that’s most obvious on is The Calm Before the Storm, a commentary on people who focus on finding a scapegoat and laying blame. It has a western-tinged cloudburst of garage band guitar with vocal harmonies that highlight the benefit of different voices versus overdubs. At the other end of the self-awareness spectrum is A Better Man, with the hope of being a stand-up kind of guy driven by a lo-fi, fuzzy punk aesthetic. Nailing another rock sub-genre is She’s Funny That Way, with a southern rock spin on a woman who’s “never going to stay, she gets high with goodbye.”
Jacoby and the band seem to really click when they edge into some power pop. Right Off the Bat is a reflection on experiences in on-line dating when “her hug broke some ribs” and a different date’s jealous ex who had just gotten out of jail. That streak of humor also makes an appearance in Bend, a mini-travelogue about the outdoor lifestyle in southern Oregon, including a pun, for those who’ve driven it, about taking the Old 97’s south to Klamath Falls. If I Don’t Fry balances the searing guitar solos with a roadhouse piano. It’s about an inmate named Lucky who’s really hoping his appeal goes through. The CD ends with the title track, an observation that “life’s a knockdown, drag out, bust up, brawl”, set to a classic heavy rock soundtrack, again featuring Jacoby’s guitar work.
No one’s going to accuse Mike Jacoby of taking himself too seriously, whether in his newer work or with his alt-country, previous band, Haymaker. Frankly, I think that’s the appeal. It’s just simple rock and roll that pegs the fun meter. So hit play on any of his tunes and get your mind set for The Long Haul.
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.