Jacket Weather has released into the world their sophomore EP ‘Ducks in a Row’, which they’ve coined as a very “Tongue-in-bill” sort of vibe. Get it??
The Sydney Yacht Rock three-piece have swam their way (expect a few more puns folks) into our hearts with their latest EP. Picture sitting by the jetty, with a blazing bright sun hitting your skin and the waves crashing ever so gently on the rocks.
It’s Jacket Weather with their second EP Ducks in a Row. Breezy and carefree, the perfect time to sail away. Tonight, they’ll be headlining at The Lansdowne with Sir Archer supporting.
Opening with Just do it well the intro smacks sharply, slapping through the water with striking guitars. The bravado, charismatic Baden Donegal-like (Ocean Alley lead vocalist) vocals soak through as the erupting guitars collide and crash through the layers of provocative woozy 70s poise.
After this big splash in the water to wake us up, the final two tracks slow things down.
Perfect night; Not Quite gives us an affectionate nudge in the direction for healthy doses of silky yet hazy infatuation. It’s wrapped up in mysterious southern-sounding guitar riffs and a bubbly palette of charm. The cheeky ‘Such a piece of shit’ line is followed by wordless harmonies and brings a nostalgic airiness to the song. If an antique shop had a sound, this ballad is what it would be oozing.
Crack, the last song on the EP will be the first song to get stuck in your head from these lads. The Suave lick of the electric guitar pulls you in immediately, preparing you for lead singer Calum Mawson’s smooth and warm vocal tones.
His tone is polished and dazzling as if he has crawled out of his room after being seduced by the sounds of The Last Shadow Puppets for the last 45 hours – it’s breathy and crispy and you wanna just collapse into its softness.
The songs inspired by deep pocket groove and the likes of TOTO and Steely Dan and the hook becomes crystalized in your mind. “Got to go win you back, your love was like smoking crack, but not like I’ve ever done that” – it’s hard not to be hypnotized by these magical melody makers.
The music video is just as seductive as the sound and quickly captivates viewers through its comedic lens. Directed by Mark Broome, it begins with the boys from Jacket Weather strutting into the studio with their sophisticated suits as they laugh at the low-budget duck costumes that the low-budget versions of themselves are waddling in.
It’s as if Tranquility Base Hotel’s Alex Turner was looking at his Fluorescent Adolescent rascal self and was thinking ‘Who the fuck are these idiots’. The rest of the music video with its smooth transitions and clever zooms, has the two different versions engaging with the song, with either sexy or silly attitudes.
“I put myself in the shoes of a man on a sinking ship with only a bucket to scoop out the waves of water, and still thinking he wasn’t gonna drown” Calum revealed about his state of mind when creating the song.
During the tracks from this EP, harmonic sophistication crawls its way over in response to the mesmerising melodies. The soundscape of these swirly flirty sounds reminds listeners it’s time for another whisky at the jazz bar. Unless you get really lovesick or seasick then these tracks will hit you in the despair feels and it might be time to get off the boat.
It’s the second day of spring, so it’s the perfect time for Jacket Weather or perhaps the finals days for Jacket Weather. Either way, get ready to voyage across existential romanticism and sit in a soundscape that feels like its submerging smoothly through the water.
