Something not-so-Corporate
- Everything in Transit
- Something Corporate's Andrew McMahon fights back from a recent bout with cancer by creating a solo project that takes the sound he already developed with Something Corporate and transforming it into a more mature and powerful sound. And on drums... Tommy Lee... yes, THAT Tommy Lee.
- Buy it on Amazon
- The band on Myspace
In a period of my life where stress is high and my boss is screwing me over, an escape from life sounds really nice… and not just a week in Florida (although, I did just enjoy a great vacation in Clearwater, FL last week). In the opening track to Jack’s Mannequin’s debut “Everything in Transit” (entitled “Holiday from Real”), McMahon sings out:
But if you left it up to me
Every day would be a holiday from real
We’d waste our weeks beneath the sun
We’d fry our brains and say it’s so much fun
Out here
But when it’s all over
I’ll come back for another year
Oh how I can relate… of course my woes are nothing compared to the past year of McMahon’s life. This CD was finished and in post-production before the diagnosis came, but on June 1st, about two months prior to the release, McMahon was hospitalized and diagnosed with leukemia. Don’t fear, however. Apparently doing well, he’s touring again and promoting the hell out of this CD.
As a huge fan of piano driven rock style music, once I heard the first single, “The Mixed Tape”, I was intrigued and left wanting more. Once my wife was hooked, I knew that I could use the guise of purchasing it as a gift for her to convince myself into buying the CD… a decision I can never regret.
By far, the most mature music to come from McMahon’s projects, the 11 tracks are as well-crafted and well-delivered as any pop songs in the past decade. Blog Critics describes the project’s sound as the “love child of Green Day and Ben Folds.” This is definitely a pretty accurate description, and like both artists, Jack’s Mannequin does not simply regurgitate its influences, but evades the temptation and chooses instead to draw from many influences and create a unique sound that is catchy and powerful. For example, “La La Lie” has an obvious Irish celtic influence and first half of the two part “MFEO” uses Sgt. Pepper-esque horns to create a fresh sound. It is evident that this CD is not simply another piano pop-punk CD from Something Corporate and yet it isn’t something differnt entirely… it’s McMahon learning from the formula he helped create with the popular Drive-Thru Records band and transcending that formula to create better developed songs with more heart.
It’s hard to choose a standout track, because the CD is one that plays well all the way through. If I had to choose, I’d pick both the current single, “Dark Blue”, and the danceable “Miss Delaney”. A great CD for your ride to school or work, each song is a sing along that can evoke laughter, catharis, and all around enjoyability. And it can’t go without saying that having Tommy Lee on drums for a piano pop-rock CD is incomparably cool.
