JAGUAR LOVE
“Johnny Whitney has made an art of singing like a deliriously deaf 12-year-old, but the debut of his new trio with Blood Brothers bandmate/guitarist Cody Votolato and ex-Pretty Girls Make Graves guitarist Jay Clark (now on drums) plays like a preteen daydream. With the Brothers’ brutal bass and cubist hardcore squall swapped for sunny guitar strums and a steady beat, Whitney can be downright tuneful. But even his most exuberant, adolescent imitations of everyone from Cyndi Lauper (“My Organ Sounds Like...”) to the Mars Volta (“Vagabond Ballroom”) bear Whitney’s trademark broken cry.” Jason Simms, Spin

After relocating to Portland from Seattle, these ferociously creative and once-noisy musicians have now added incredibly catchy melody to their songwriting. Votolato's crazed Japanese electric 12-string guitar parts remain as intricate and Beefheart-esque as ever, but Whitney has turned his scream to Bolan-esque glam. Result: Pop music. Of a sort.

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