Play 90 second soundbite of 'You Gotta Move' @ 'CD quality'
The fairly bog-standard line up of drums, bass, guitars and harmonica leave The Jumps in the 'just another blues based band' category; there's nothing new on offer with either the instrumentation or the material and its portrayal. The Jumps share out lead vocal duties between Tim and Di; here, there's just a glimmer of something a little bit different as Di brings a powerful voice into the fray; it's here that The Jumps begin to get the real blues/soul feel and start to make a difference.
The Jumps' set repertoire is about 70/30% covers/originals. Although not the best recording I've ever heard, if I look through the rather flat production I can hear a vibrant sounding band that'll gig well at smaller venues, get plenty of support slots and earn a few bob. Unfortunately, based on this demo, The Jumps'll limit their appeal somewhat. Unfortunately again, to put together a real gem of a demo tends to be a little expensive - and there's the dilemma, how can a band at this level really get out and earn the big money to be able to re-invest in prime studio time? Yes, it's tough!!
So, The Jumps appear to have a decent enough catalogue of blues and soul based material. They appear to be able to perform that material well enough. But, as a demo, this work just fails to hit the mark - it lacks real energy and passion. Somewhere there needs to be an injection of something just a bit different. I'm sure The Jumps will continue to gig around the country - they'll continue to gain friends and supporters. But, there needs to be some real investment if they're going to open many new, more challenging and rewarding doors by the issue of a demo.
If this review is sounding a little negative, I certainly don't mean it to! I try to be realistic, honest and constructive in my approach. The Jumps should re-visit their approach to this demo with a view to setting their standards higher to be able to reach higher.
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