Search - Jam :: Sound Effects

The best album from one of the world's greatest ever bands

Nigel Sawyer | Decatur, GA USA | 11/25/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It's difficult to define what the Jam really mean to me as there's always that risk of pidgeonholing them and thus reducing them, but in the rare case of the Jam the music speaks for itself. I'm sure likeminded people who really love the Jam will know what I mean and admit that the band's music is more than just a collection of great songs, but instead a soundtrack to life, particularly for those like me who lived in Britain at the time the songs were written and recorded. Weller's songs speak of how we all feel but could never quite put into words and the Jam were always about speaking to young people one-on-one from a mutual standpoint and never as the "idolised pop group singing to the starry-eyed fans that hang on their every word". The Jam's first two albums were essentially punk records while their following albums showed a broad range of influences including the Small Faces, the Who, the Kinks, the Beatles, Tamla Motown and, in the last year or so of their career, soul and funk. Paul Weller's songwriting abilities already reached incredible heights on the album "All Mod Cons" and progressed even further on "Setting Sons", but for me, the next album, "Sounds Affects" is the one that continues to stand out and is, in my view, the album that displays the peak of Weller's songwriting. Some critics have cited "Sound Affects" as the Jam's "Revolver" and it's not difficult to see why. In fact, the Beatles' "Revolver" was played relentlessly by the group on the tour they embarked on prior to entering the studio to record "Sound Affects" and it's influence is clearly audible here, from the backwards guitars on "Dream Time" and "That's Entertainment" to the bass riff from "Taxman" on "Start!". There isn't a bad song on the album. From the infectious opening bass line of "Pretty Green" to the closing fade of "Scrape Away", this album perfectly captures the angst, boredom and frustration felt in the dawn of Thatcher's Britain at the dawn of a new decade. The line "Pissing down with rain and boring Wednesdays" from "That's Entertainment" sums it all up, and it is also clearly felt in the track "Set The House Ablaze", but there are still glimmers of optimism shown in the Ray Davies-esque "Monday" and "Man In The Corner Shop". A truly great album is one that evokes the times when it was recorded but that also still carries momentum, and sometimes even relevance, when listening to it today. "Sound Affects" is one such album."

Band hits pinnacle of their career next-to-last LP

hyperbolium | Earth, USA | 06/19/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"After hitting a new peak with their third LP, "All Mod Cons," their fourth LP, "Setting Sons" seemed to lose focus. This followup, and their next-to-last studio LP, put it all back together: the punchy instrumentalism of their debut, the strong songwriting and melodicism of "All Mod Cons," and a strong dash of poeticism in the lyrics. It's truly Paul Weller's most consistent and powerful set of songs to date.Musically this draws heavily from Revolver-era Beatles. The psychedelic touches are spare, but the guitar and basslines echo the tone of the Beatles '66 release. Lyrically, Weller moves away from the storytelling he'd become so adept at and uses more poetic forms. "Man in the Corner Shop," for example, is a brilliantly formed lyric that describes a community's chain of envy, and "That's Entertainment" creates images that stick in the mind long after the LP's finished playing.Through and through this is the Jam's highpoint, and perhaps the finest example of Britain's rock 'n' roll of the era. It's an amazing document of how far this band evolved in the three years since their debut."

Stunning effort by a maturing punk band.

Rahshad Black | Moreno Valley, CA | 07/11/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Jam took British punk music and made it into something more, and each album finds them exploring a different facit of their sound. "Sound Affects" is between the era of hard mod rock and soul seen on the final album. It begins with the punkish "Pretty Green" and immediatly slows into the almost dreary "Monday". The optimistic "But I'm Different Now" is of lesser quality, but short. "Set the House Ablaze" is another hard song with an interesting minor key lead line. "Start" takes the Beatles "Taxman" bassline and adds in Paul Weller's mod sensablities to make it a new song. "That's Entertainment" is a dark and moody acoustic song exploring the ups and downs of life. "Dream Time" and "Music for the Last Couple" are interesting and unique, but are somehow rather forgetable as well. "Man in the Corner Shop" is another Beatles take-off, borrowing from "Here Comes the Sun" a guitar line that Paul makes his own. "Boy About Town" is quintesential mod-pop with a cheery trumpet solo. The album closer is an abrupt change in mood, showing Weller at his nastiest and most blunt" ("Your twisted cynicism makes me feel sick... The trouble is your thoughts a catching disease"). Overall, this album mirrors the Beatles "Revolver" in its vague psychedelic vibe, rock sensiblities and solid songwriting indicative of a great band and talented songwriter."