Not the Joneses is well-named. This isn't your little brother's garage band -- your little brother only wishes he could jam like this. Russell Bergum, Mark Chaffee, Vince Consolo, and Dug Schoenbeck are the stuff labels dream of -- talented, committed and just waiting for the right deal to come along. Not the Joneses, new to True Tunes Records, was originally released independently and proves once again that John Thompson knows good music when he hears it.
It would be easy to dismiss this accessible, hooky CD as ear candy on first listen. Don't make that mistake. Despite the fact that you'll like it right away, you'll also find more substance as you dig into it. It's poppy without being trite; it's late '70s- or early '80s-style guitar rock without being a caricature of that genre.
The songs range musically from poppiest pop (upbeat, catchy rhythms in "One Time Woman" and "Ashes to Ashes") to rockiest rock (crunchy, classic rock guitars and heavy drums in "Time Ain't No Reason," "Wait for Love," and "God is Dead") to a ballad or two ("For the Cross" and the hidden track at the end of "I Love You Anyway"). There are even elements of country (6/8 time and harmonica on "For the Cross") and old-style punk (strident guitar and screamed background vocals on "I Love You Anyway") to be found. A lesser band would sound ridiculous trying to pull off that sort of mix, but Not the Joneses does so masterfully.
The skillful instrument handling and tight vocals are a big part of the reason why Not the Joneses comes together despite the divergence of styles. This is a great CD to listen to while reliving your '80s rock star fantasies while driving over the speed limit (with the top down, if possible). [Please note that The Phantom Tollbooth is not responsible for any speeding tickets incurred by listening to this CD. Some restrictions may apply. Contents may have settled during shipping. Void where prohibited by law.]
Lyrically, these guys wear their faith on their sleeves without bashing listeners upside the head. They tackle themes of faith, despair, temptation, marital infidelity, and people who look for The Answer while ignoring it right before their eyes. There are no rose-colored glasses to be found here: Not the Joneses realize that there is beauty to be found despite the frustrations and ugliness life often shows us. This view is a refreshing break from the sugarcoated worldview often found in the mainstream Christian music industry. It's a bit more gritty, but it feels more real, more like these guys are living in the same world you and I inhabit.
A couple of the songs present themselves as radio-ready single material: "Ashes to Ashes," which has a single mix conveniently provided as the last track, and "J-Lite," whose poppy beat is the background for lists of problems in the modern world a la Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire." Unlike Joel's more famous song, though, "J-Lite" ends with a hopeful refrain:
Where have we gone - we've lost our way
This is our home - and all we like sheep have gone astray
I believe in love, I believe in love,
I believe in love, I believe in love.
The only problem to be found anywhere is one of oversight; the second track, "God is Dead," espouses just the opposite view, but its hook asserts that:
Hey now God is dead, that is what Mr. Nitchze said
What the heck went through his head Nitchze said
God is dead.
The kicker, of course, is that the end lyric is:
But my spirit lifted when I saw those words so gifted
Cuz someone wrote beneath in red 'Nitchze's dead'
Signed God.
But the listener walks away singing "God is dead, God is dead," unfortunately undercutting the meaning of the song.
All in all, though, this may be one of the few great albums around. You'll like it the day you get it, and you'll still be listening months later. How rare is that?
4.5 tocks
Other coverage for this album
The Phantom Tollbooth 1999Reviewed by Alex KlagesIt's hard to know where to start with this band. Not The Joneses' eponymous debut album is a tight, well-polished classic rock album, yet very much a product of the 90's. By this, I mean that on one hand, the album is full of those big pop hooks and rock riffage that is associated with the 70's, but on the other hand, there's a definite modern rock edge to the music. It's almost as though there…The Phantom Tollbooth 1997Reviewed by Linda T. Stonehocker"Hey, Linda, when are you going to review that CD I gave you last winter?" Mark Chaffee never misses an opportunity. He doesn't give his band's Not the Joneses full-length, professionally produced self-titled debut CD away to every member of the press in Chicago, so now it's follow-up time. "When they ask you to play Cornerstone," I responded. The Phantom Tollbooth publishers are always on the…Similar sounding releases
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