As far as hotly anticipated albums go, this is one of the year's most drooled-about, and it's with great excitement that the debut LP from Gentleman Jesse And His Men arrived this week. With an LP jacket that instantly plays along with Elvis Costello's This Year's Model artwork, Atlanta-based Gentleman Jesse has proffered up a stellar album that holds up to the highest regards the debut 7" garnered, and fills out perfectly as planned. A front-to-back modern power pop classic, it's only right that Douche Master is the imprint on the record, and as the showering waves of brilliantly shimmering hooks cut deep into your fleshy brain, you'll be reeling uncontrollably with adoration, as it seems impossible for the sun not to shine while it's playing. Even submerged in one hell of a year for knockout LPs, Gentleman Jesse And His Men cut right through the gristle and latch onto your still-beating heart in time to win you over with glowing results.
Produced and recorded by Atlanta's golden boy behind the mixing boards, Dave Rahn (also drummer for Gentleman Jesse, Carbonas, Baby Shakes, etc), these guys hammer and bleed out some of the most genuine songs of the genre and pull cues from the best in the field. Just like the way your hairs stood up when you first got hit by The Beat's "Walking Out on Love," Scruffs' "Break The Ice," or Flamin' Groovies' "Shake Some Action," Gentleman Jesse And His Men are blazing a high road to rock'n'roll heaven with their marvelously catchy pop perfection.
If you were as bowled over as we were with last year's debut single, "I Don't Wanna Know" then hold on for dear life as one of the strongest cornerstones of the Southern pop armada (see The Black and Whites, Marked Men, and Lover! for further proof) delivers a crushing blow to the nervous system that will cure depression, heal old wounds, and get your chest pumping with life again. Don't miss out on this album while the summer sun is still blazing down, and look out for Gentleman Jesse and the boys to appear in the opening slot for Paul Collins Beat next month in Atlanta at The Earl, for a meeting of the minds that's destined to bridge generations of pop royalty.
Pick up a copy of the LP from Goner or Florida's Dying for best results, and check out a video clip of Gentleman Jesse And His Men from SXSW earlier this year, right here...
