Reviewed by Harry Kaplan

Wow! My sweet spot for sure! This is self described as blues rock, but it is more. Definitely a double shot of atmosphere. This EP is definitely light and spacey. Just enough distortion and delay on the guitar where it is still peaceful and gratifying. Too much knob twisting can cause problems. The Jibs don’t have to worry because these folks have discipline.

“The Jibs are an Austin-native blues-rock band made up of singer and guitarist Will Clark, guitarist and keyboardist Caden Westmoreland, bassist Roman Parnell, and drummer Eric Schueler. The four met as freshmen at the University of Texas sailing club within their first few days on campus.” (From The Jibs’ Bio)

The opening track, Twisted Game, is the kind of song that grabs you and holds on. The lyrics are quite powerful. It could be about a woman or  it could be about addiction, maybe both. Give it a listen and draw your own conclusions:

Yesterday my phone rang 
It was a voice that I had never known 
I listened as my heart sank 
It said that you had traced your veins with stone 

Could I be so blind? 
We had such little time 
Tell me what was on your mind 
And set me free from your designs 

It is a very intelligent song which just happens to have amazing instrument parts and vocals. Also, there is a celestial guitar solo about four minutes in. 

I said The Jibs are not just a blues rock band, they are much more than just blues, but they can also play some ass kicking blues. End Of Time (Track 6) is pure delta blues with plenty of twang and slide guitar. Some great infectious guitar licks that will stick in your mind like a finger and superglue. 

This is a very strong first offering from an Austin group I will probably start hearing about in short order. These guys got the chops for sure. Listen before you buy and you will be hooked.

Listen and buy The Jibs EP on Bandcamp