Album Review: The Jealous Sound – “Got Friends” EP

Last October, The Jealous Sound released their first album in a half-decade: a five song EP entitled Got Friends, which contained three original tracks and two remixes.  This is the artistic equivalent of sigh: a small release, containing little original material, crammed in towards the end of the year.  It turns out, however, that this is more of a gasp and that Got Friends is all that’s left of the band and, presumably, singer Blair Shehan’s musical ambitions.  Stories of him falling into a steep depression and disappearing have circulated the internet and there’s no way to verify their truth.  It’s a shame that The Jealous Sound have broken up and that we have to wait so long for their leftover material.  “Got Friends,” the first track off their recent EP, is nearly perfect.    

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The Jealous Sound are especially apt at creating emotional gravitas.  Their songs feel heavy and, somehow, important.  It’s about subtlety: the thin distortion on the guitar; picked out chords for a lead riff; lots of empty space in the verse.  This is a dissertation on late 90’s emo.

Singer Blair Shehan’s voice never fills out; he always sounds exhausted, as if he can barely muster the energy and maintain his composure long enough to sing the next bar.  “Got Friends” is no exception.  The well-placed harmonies fill out the chorus and allow Shehan to sell his passion, but ultimately we are left with a song that lives and dies by its angst, which has always been the band’s strong suit.  “Got Friends” is a song we should all own, just in case we need someone to commiserate with.

The Jealous Sound – Got Friends