If you listen to JET (the band) you get this warm, familiar feeling from some sort of primordial deja-vu. It seems every song starts with a variation of a familiar hook from a past musical life. But unlike cover bands, JET looks more like someone you don't recognize out of context - like seeing your boss in Wal-Mart.
On a rare "guys night out" trip last night to the Starland Ballroom in Sayerville, NJ, three aging hipsters spent an enjoyable evening with JET and their reassuring, yet unique sound.
Just a few thoughts from the three 50-something attendees: JET is a great live band - energetic and relentless "Man that was loud!" Lots of parent/kid combos in the crowd - maybe this goes on more than we realize since this is the first live concert we've been to in a loooooong time.
On the way home we were comparing lists of the bands we'd just heard. Sure, every Aussie band by birthright has to do a tribute to AC/DC and we sure heard that, but there were others, like the Stones, complete with a hand on hip imitation of Jagger. I know I heard the Beatles and one of us thought there was a Supremes theme buried in there somewhere.
Just for giggles we asked our resident 17-year-old if he knew about JET. His response - "yeah, they're just an AC/DC rip-off." I guess it's easy to shoehorn them into just about any category (replace AC/DC with the band of your choice) and discount them as just another cover band. But Jet has tapped into something and I hope they keep evolving their sound.
We all agreed bands like JET have a real commercial appeal to classic rock radio. Instead of playing the same old tired list, they can get some new music in and still play to the audience. Overall, it was a great evening and we look forward to future JET releases like we look forward to seeing a long lost friend - we've got a lot of catching up to do.
Print
