Impressive instrumentals, terrible vocals.
"Alone" is a solo album from Jay Jerz, a member of the band If Not For Dreaming... Drawing influence from a diverse set of artists, which includes KISS, The Beatles and Gordon Lightfoot, the album certainly isn't your average collection of hard rock tunes.
Jay Jerz plays his rock as down and dirty as it gets: no frills, rough around the edges and proud of it, the Connecticut-based musician not only sings on the album but recorded all of the instrumentals as well, giving a whole new angle on the phrase "one man band". The biting guitar melodies, thundering rhythm section and gritty vocals all contribute to that American rogue image that we all know and love.
Overall, this is a good album that I did enjoy, but there are several occasions where Jerz's vocals do sound a bit whiny; he insists on using that annoying slurred effect indie types use to sound as if they are too cool to bother with any effort. The irritating drawl doesn't do it for me on indie tracks and it sure as hell doesn't do it for me on a hard rock album, especially when his instrumental contribution is so tight and impressive. Title track 'Alone' is particularly guilty of this offence and spoils what I suppose should be the highlight of the album. There are other times, particularly on 'Hey You' where the instrumentals appear to overpower his vocals, leaving his voice sounding strained and giving the impression that he is struggling to cope with the power behind him.
Jay Jerz has been in the music industry for a long time and has some impressive collaborations and projects under his belt; there is no question that he is a hugely talented instrumentalist, but I do wonder whether he has a good enough voice to make it as a vocalist. For me, this was the biggest area of disappointment on what was otherwise a cracking album. It turned what would have been an album I'd listen to again to something I was happy to put away in a box to be forgotten.
Jerz has a new album, "Rollercoaster Mind", which is due for release in the UK on 1st September 2010; I wonder whether his vocal performance will have improved any since "Alone" was recorded... only one way to find out!
To find out more about Jay Jerz, check out his websites:
www.jayjerz.com
www.myspace.com/jayjerz