Welcome to the Boolin Tunes Staff Spotlight, a special segment on the site in which we dive deep into a classic or simply personally beloved album to shine a light on releases that we feel deserve a second glance.
After a number of splits, including with screamo legend Orchid, Jeromes Dream dropped their debut to great fanfare within the scene. Known primarily for their live shows, and vocalist Jeff Smith‘s tendency to scream without a microphone, their next move required careful, considerate calculation. How can they further build and harness the hype around themselves, yet grow without alienating fans?
In this case, the answer is clear: alienate the fans anyway. The next year, they released Presents, and completely abandoned the screamo-style vocals.
Hi, I’m Bill The Confusion Specialist
Gimme fourteen minutes and
You won’t have any idea what hit you
And don’t worry, you can bet you’ll get your money’s worth
The band retained the non-sequitur titles, nonsense lyrics, and (mostly) brief, quick-paced songs. However, a new style of vocals, as if shouted from a distant megaphone, took center stage. Instead of being berated by a nearby teenager, now you’re sitting at the back of a tour bus, your guide at the front.
Waltzing Watchers
Falter faster
Here’s Hero’s hero
Wishing he were her John Wayne
Be that as it may, the dirty secret of it all is that these vocals fit their new sound better. Though still omnipresent, the guitar-work is better-placed, rather than an onslaught of sound. The aggression takes a back seat to style and sensibility (outside of the lyrics, which are still inane and incomprehensible).
Her green grass
Is blue-green
Green grass
Now we have a band with a better sense of place, taking themselves more seriously as songwriters and less seriously as genre kingpins. Despite fan backlash, the decisions made on this album inform their most recent work after reformation on LP. The songs make more sense now, and are more fun to listen to as a result. That’s not to say that debut Seeing More than Safety isn’t a landmark album in its own right, but instead was inherently something to grow out of.
Jeromes Dream spent 18 years in hibernation after releasing Presents, but left us with a true gift to ponder during that time.
We hope that you join us next Sunday for another present from our team.