JEFF the Brotherhood

Zone (2016)

RENALDO69

JEFF the Brotherhood are quite a nifty piece of work. Mostly because they draw inspiration from SEVERAL facets of rock and roll through quite a few eras. They've always been touted highly and after digging through their past records, I can see why. Zone punctuates this journey pretty well and while some tracks run a tad repetitive at times, when you look at it as a whole, it's undeniable how unique and intriguing JEFF's brand of music is. 

Zone continues their guitar-centric style of mashing up a zillion influences. The duo layer slurred lyrics (a bit too lazy at times) smartly to a variety of rock spines with trips down the grunge lane ("Energy") as well as embracing the popper side of things on "Idiot" -- which feels like their tribute to Weezer. The same could be said for the more mid-tempo jams like "Habit" and "Ox". These songs could have been more aggressive but they still work nicely in their restrained nature. Why though? Probably due to the buzzy rhythms and eclectic guitarwork. "Punishment" highlights this with eclectic riffs compounding JEFF's overall stoner/garage sound. 

But most of all, it's their sludgy, scraping guitars and addiction to the likes of Black Sabbath that make tracks like "Toasted" and "You" pop the most. They'll feel most familiar to fans who most likely felt a curveball in the Brian Eno-esque synth self-titled opener. It does set the tone for a rollercoaster ride that drops midway but picks back up the relevant and necessary pace to peak at the end. The writing's on point, it's diverse enough for all rock fans and does have quite an intricate flair to it. In short, Zone may have run a few tracks too long but it's definitely worth the pickup.