Gentleman Jesse I Wonder if You Would Even Notice: Singles and Rarities LP
This Atlanta four-piece plays upbeat, hook-driven power pop built on clean guitars and tight melodies. Sharing some of the same DNA as EXPLODING HEARTS or the TRANZMITORS but with a lighter, less aggressive touch, GENTLEMAN JESSE trades in most of the speed and harshness for classic pop songwriting. Formed in 2006 by Jesse Smith with drummer Dave Rahn (both from CARBONAS), the band’s early singles captured a scene steeped in melody and a fascination with the late ’70s band the NERVES. This collection gathers sixteen tracks from those first five years, most around two minutes long, offering a concise picture of their evolution. Later songs like “I Want What’s Mine” and “I Can’t Hardly Take It Anymore” stand out for their extra bite and momentum, but damn if my brain doesn’t keep going back to the first track, “I Don’t Wanna Know (Where You Been Tonight),” which is just a really good pop song. The collection as a whole works as a snapshot of an era when a bunch of punks started playing pop music. The lyrics, true to style, stick pretty close to affairs of the heart.