Does this come as any surprise? I mean, really?  Handsome Jack has been a consistent staple of our blog and the Buffalo music scene for years now because they always deliver, live AND in the studio. Their newest release is no exception.  Supermoon is a fantastic album, packed with deep southern soul, rock grit and tone for days. You can call it southern rock, you can call it riff-rock, you call it whatever you want. The fact is that Handsome Jack write extremely catchy, soulful rock'n'roll that's as unforgettable as it is groovy.

The first thing I noticed when I received the album was the artwork. The cover is a psychedelic rooster with a whole lot going on inside it(see above). Say what you will, but cover art is important. It defines the feel of the album early and sets a precedent for what to expect. I think that rooster about sums up the entire album. It is uniquely vibrant, colorful, and, well, pretty cool.

When I popped in Supermoon I had no idea what I was about to hear. Handsome Jack's sound has evolved tremendously over the years. When they first released their excellent debut album, Heatseeker, they had a much more garage-y hard rock sound, akin to Zeppelin or AC/DC. Riff-shaking madness. Their sound matured with their follow-up self-titled album and they clearly had more of a southern influence on that one. This influence continues on the new album as the organ is much more prevalent and the songs have a much slower, groove focused approach. "Mosquito Blues" is an excellent example of this. Handsome Jack is no longer barreling out of the gate. There taking their time and it shows. Awesome riffs aplenty still, the whiskey has set in a bit and the bands sound is more relaxed because of it.

A few of the tracks on the album might sound familiar. That's because they were included on HJ's excellent "Prologue" EP a year or so ago. "Country Patience" and "Take Me Back Home" are two of the best tracks on the album and it was great to see that they found a home here, re-recorded and sounding even better than the first go around.

What sets Handsome Jack apart from the thousands and thousands of bands in Buffalo is this. They construct excellent songs filled with memorable hooks and choruses, all while maintaining feel and tone. They are retro, but at the same time fresh. They pay homage to the groups that influenced them but still have enough balls to strike out on their own and do their own thing. Supermoon continues in the tradition of high quality that this band has come to represent.

rating: B+


Handsome Jack - Faking It by buffablog2