Jestr – The Dead & Riches
Release Date: 11th February 2021
Label: Self-Released
Bandcamp
Genre: Alternative, Pop-Punk.
FFO: Sparta, Brand New, Yellowcard, Foo Fighters.
Review By: Séamus Patrick Burke
Everything old is new again. If something was once in style, it takes about twenty years to come back into style, doesn’t it? It happened with disco, it happened with new wave, and it’s happening with early aughts alternative. Seems like we skipped right over grunge, but Nickelback probably took the luster off of that particular gem.
JESTR, the quartet from Lafayette, Louisiana, talk a lot about “curious manifestations” and the paranormal in the press kits for their debut album, The Dead & Riches. Frontman Brett Bradley, who has a superhero name if we’ve ever heard one, talks a lot about the intense spiritual experiences that led to the formation of the group and what informed the lyrical concepts of this introduction to the group. There’s a dark humor and experimental edge that JESTR clearly wish to convey. Do they succeed?
Right from the get-go, a good way to describe JESTR’s sound is lush. The closing track is even titled “Lush”, but we’ll get to that. Bradley’s vocals are crystal clear, mixed front and center like a pop or country album. Lyrics are easy to discern. Alex Miller’s bass is always present, and Austin Wood’s snare drum is so clear it can be heard three towns over. Bradley and co-guitarist Zack Guidry bring both the power chords and dissonant parts, the harshest being on pre-release single “Birth of a Charlatan” with its almost waltz-like beat.
It’s the weird parts of the record that make you really sit up and take notice, like the almost bluesy album opener, “Sonoma”. Or the organs and acoustics that close the album on “Lush” (not to mention the bitchin’ solo). The opening of “Avenue of the Giants” could easily be mistaken for a lofi track before the song really kicks into high gear. Synths and pianos are peppered throughout “The Man From Taured”. JESTR are tight enough that they got the rock aspects down, but these little digressions make you realize they can go further.
Easily a major highlight of the album is the lyrics. Bradley really runs with the dark, sardonic humor the band promised, and the bright production makes the dissonance delightfully mordant. “Scare You!” has a way with a putdown (“Like a cardboard face, there’s nothing behind those eyes.”). “Gold Beach” would sound like a fun summer getaway if not for the line, “I’m moving out somewhere new, somewhere where the air don’t smell like you.” “The Fix” and “Hades” indulge in two classic rock subjects; drugs and The Devil. For the former, it’s fun to remember that hip-hop doesn’t have a monopoly on catchy hooks about cocaine (“Got some cocaine, thought it okay, made me feel nearly ten feet tall”). “By Design” has a line that feels right out of a Fall Out Boy song (“All that I want is to be on your mind”), so the early aughts motifs are on-brand if nothing else.
JESTR have a solid introduction with The Rich & Dead, but it’s important to remember that early aughts rock fell out of favor because of how homogenized the sound became. After all, which is worse; Chad Kroeger, or the Chad Kroeger knock-offs? If JESTR wants to make an impression, indulging in the weirder parts of their sound would be the perfect way to do that. The band may’ve been inspired by a spiritual experience, but those are frequently super personal to those who experience them. What’s the point of dancing with the devil if it doesn’t get weird? 
(3.5 / 5)
