The Jane Does – The Jane Does (self released)
It seems hard to find good bands fronted by women no longer aged in their teens in Sydney these days. The reality is that the city’s small roster of rock and roll venues means the sisters (mums? aunts?) aren’t hiding, you just need to look for them at the right time.
Along with The Sugar Beats and Raising Ravens, The Jane Does are the pick of the semi-femme crop (although technically you could say that the former come from Wollongong.)
The Jane Does are Rebecca Halley (vocals and guitar) and Joanne Bennett (bass and vocals) sharing front-of-stage duties with guitarist Matt Allison. Rebecca and Jo are cousins and have shared stages before. They’ve had a series of drummers but Tim Savage now seems firmly sequestered on the stool, barring spontaneous combustion or bizarre gardening accidents.
The Jane Does have been threatening to release their debut album for some time. Their name infers anonymity in the legal system, but the band’s been doing their thing live and raising their profile for a few years. They've gradually cast off their Monkees and Go Go's covers to work up material of their own.
The bulk of their LP was recorded in just two days with Jay Whalley (Frenzal Rhomb, Neptune Power Federation) at his Pet Food Factory studios in Marrickville. “Around the Bend” was put down at Rancom St Studios for a soundtrack. Halley vocalises on eight of the 10 tracks, the other two are Bennett efforts.
The Jane Does play pop with a steely edge. The first time I saw them with then new drummer, I thought they’d found their man, and they were now a rock and roll band. The record is proof.
Opener “So Bright” is exactly that. It jumps out of the gates and gallops down the straight, all rock and not so much pop. Lyrically, it’s a woman’s assessment of a male “super nova”, with a carnal undertone (he’s riding on Highway 69), and it makes a statement from the get-go.
These are solid songs with depth that rock. Halley’s vocal is strong and the engine room is unassuming but high quality. The occasional piece of delicacy like “Afterthought”, where Matt Allison brings his mandolin, shows a band that can adroitly change tack.
Jo Bennett takes the mic for “DC Girl” and does a fine job, adding some earthiness. The song rides on the back of Allison’s sprightly guitar and some Ramones-y backing vocals that round it off nicely.
“Around The Bend” is the gem for mine, a road song with chiming, climbing guitar and a sense of expansiveness. (Digital) single “Scars” isn’t far behind. Here, chicken scratch guitar tumbles into a big verse/chorus construct with some Allison-Halley guitar interplay. Lyrics about emotional intoxication tempered by restraint (”You’ll see me naked/But you’ll never see my scars”) give it depth.
“You Gave Me Nothing” is another winner – sung by Jo and written by her brother Bill Posters from iconic Sydney punk band Rocks. Nice solo, too.
A word on Matt Allison: the guy’s a largely unsung figure on the Sydney underground scene who’s been around for decades in bands like Lawnsmell, Spurs for Jesus and (currently) Pete Ross and The Sapphire. He’s not flashy but technically he’s right there. Sonically speaking, Spats is often the “special sauce” that gives a band extra textures, and here’s a case in point.
If you’re in or near the boomer stage and if you can’t take something out of the lyrics of “The World I Used To Know”, you’re very hard to please .
Production is by Jay Whalley and the band and it’s punchy, if a little harsh. A bigger budget and more studio time might have brought out more light and shade in the arrangements but, hey, it’s no longer the 1980s. Just spare us a return of the horribly overdone gated snare sound.
Highly recommended but don’t dwell on it. It’s a short run pressing,
3/4
