The supergroup with a mission
The Jelly Jam come under that awful categorisation of a ‘Super Group’ – far too often that tag seems to disappoint as few such bands live up to the name. The band comprises John Myung of Dream Theater on bass, Rod Morgenstein of Winger and Dixie Dregs on drums and Ty Tabor of Kings X on guitar and vocals. This is their third release and it’s a concept album which ‘follows the heroic yet daunting journey of The Prophet who, inspired by a deep sense of responsibility embarks on a mission to try and save the world, to open the eyes of Those Who Will Not See ‘. I don’t know about that, the only thing we want to know is if it’s any good.
The answer to that question is yes it does and the great thing is that it has its own sound; it never feels like lesser versions of their day jobs. Musically it’s in the vein of Steven Wilson when he has his Porcupine Tree hat on. It’s not a heavy rock album and is mellow in places but many of the songs are interspersed with metal guitar that at times echoes Tool and Alice In Chains. The opening trio of tracks, ‘Core’, ‘Stain On The Sun’ and ‘Water’ showcase all of the band’s elements and are great. Perfect Lines has echoes of 60’s Psychedelia in its vocals; ‘Mr Man’ has bone crunching riffs and a terrific solo and ‘Memphis’, the stand-out song on the album, is the essence of The Jelly Jam in a 3 minute song.
It’s not just a studio project either, with an American tour on the horizon. However until European dates are announced we will have to make do with the album, which is recommended and well worth checking out.
8/10
