Jackdaw4 "The Eternal Struggle For Justice"

Jackdaw4 is considered one of the best modern power pop bands out there, with 2 stellar releases (Gramophone Logic, and Bipolar Diversions)  I was prepared for another fantastic production. “Eternal Struggle for Justice” starts out with a lurching organ and dark tone more suited to Bryan Scary, than Jellyfish – although an angelic choral break at the songs middle is more like it. Then the blare of a Motown styled horn section greets us on “Everyone Becomes The Road They Take” and it’s clear the album has a more varied theatrical theme. It isn’t as immediate as it’s predecessors, but there are plenty of great songs here. One gem for sure is the brilliant power ballad “We Sold It All,” starting with a gentle McCartney-like melody that evolves into a rich rock guitar tapestry full of Queen-like touches, you almost expect it to be a finale… but these guys are just getting started. Fans of XTC will love the macabre melodies like “Waiting To Die” and “Wonderful” taking the listener on a compelling journey full of rich imagery. These songs intercut dramatic piano and heavy guitar with contrasting sweet melodic breaks in the chorus, especially in “Wonderful” where it feels like an entire album’s worth of themes are condensed into four minutes. The big melodic jewel in this album’s crown is “Pornography” with a boogie beat piano melody that recalls ELO and cascading harmonies that flourish each verse, all about “Pornography, sweetest of views for a boy like me.” Another gem is the strong anthem “The Great Unknown” full of horns and guitars. The ending song “Baby, I’m a Killer” has a gorgeous chorus in this Brian Wilson influenced gem. So yes, the band comes through in spectacular fashion, in fact it would be easy to picture this album as a hit musical soundtrack.

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