Time for the underrated gem of the week. The Jelly Jam is about as awesome a side project as one can get. Ty Tabor, Rod Morgenstein and John Myung. That's King's X, The Dixie Dregs and Dream Theater. I mean, c'mon. Two records of superb quality and some incredible jams. Wally Farkas' (Galactic Cowboys) label Molken Music, will be reissuing both albums digitally in early 2011, as well as some unreleased bonus content. Oh, and a NEW record is also apparently in the can. Tis a good morning!
In the meantime, sample these tasty nuggets and support this band and incredible label HERE.
I've been on a big Galactic Cowboys kick lately. If you're not familiar with these Texan/Missourian (?) dudes then spend some time digging into their amazing catalog, which spans a decade, releasing albums both on Geffen Records and Metal Blade. Six LP's and one awesome EP complete the GC catalog. Get all of it. It's either on clearance or out of print but easy to find for a few bucks a piece.
Think King's X, with 4-part harmonies instead of three. Think Dream Theater without all the wanking. Think Beatles-meets-Metallica with more than a hint of sarcasm and a sense of humor. Think awesome.
Their catalog (and sometimes fan base) is split into two factions: Before the hiatus (Geffen) and after (Metal Blade). Danie Cnoier or Wally Farkas. Fuck the haters. I love it all. Space In Your Face and The Horse That Bud Bought are my favorites but they're all amazing records. Name a few bands that never wrote a bad song. It's harder than you think. Sure, there has been some filler/intro/avant garde cuts, but I still find them enjoyable. Sometimes.
The band unfortunately called it quits in 2000 after their swan song Let It Go (featuring Jerry Gaskill from King's X on drums). Bassist/vocalist Monty Colvin went on to start Crunchy, a pop-punk-metal project. Vocalist/guitarist Ben Higgins started Gristle with some Texan dudes and his son. Former drummer Alan Doss still produces records (Jambi's Revenge, etc) and still plays. Dane Connier started The Connier Brothers Band, with guess who else? Wally Farkas started Molken Music, an independent label only releasing music from his friends, which include Dug Pinnick, Ty Tabor ("Balance" is his finest record to date, by the way), King's X DVD's and unreleased and live music and this year, his first solo LP, "Past Due".
I love this band. I always come back to them and get on a huge GC kick for a few weeks. Fucking awesome band.
"Fear Not" (from 1996's Machine Fish LP):
"Nothing To Say" (from 1998's At The End of the Day):
