A Special Album

‘A Special Album’ is the debut offering from the mysteriously titled Ralph Myerz & The Jack Herren Band. It catapults you:- the listener, into a spiralling odyssey of downtempo wonder. A Place where dubbed out soundscapes, collide with crashing breaks, cinematic twists, psychedelic wig-outs and dark sinister jazz thrashes. Ralph Myerz And The Jack Herren Band have made an amazing album that documents many moods, many emotions and many stories in one unique and cohesive mix. Uptempo “poppy” songs, sit comfortably amongst heavily beat driven tunes, that in turn drift into mellow and relaxing tunes, with more than just a sprinkle of Nordic charm. So there you have it, Ralph Myerz & The Jack Herren Band will soothe your soul, cure your broken heart and rock your world! ‘A Special Album’ indeed, and a very special band at that.
Norway’s Ralph Myerz follows up his last buzz-heavy EP with the full-length A Special Album–a weightless yet pleasing mix of good-natured cheese and sunny down tempo. With a light trip-hop touch, Myerz draws from artists such as Bent and Gus Gus, while incorporating elements of dub and astral jazz. Some songs have a Martin Denny-esque exotica quality about them, such as “Casino” but the record plays it straight most of the time, infusing mellow electronics with dreamy reverb and throbbing bass tones. Myerz’ experiments do occasionally go awry, for example, the retro-funk of “Funky Bizness” goes nowhere. Nevertheless, A Special Album promises great things in the future with its airy, off-kilter sensibilities. –Matthew Cooke