David Gedge, frontman of the Wedding Present, has expressed his admiration for Silver Spring MD trio The Jet Age. The band's music certainly bares similarities to that of the Wedding Present, with erratic rhythm guitars and fuzz entrenched solos. This aspect, coupled with a profound interest in the music of the Who, provides a basic description of their core sound.
Breathless was the name of the band's 2006 debut record. It then took the band very little time to begin their next project, a three-act musical album entitled "What Did You Do During The Way, Daddy?" that was released late last year. In short, the eleven-track recording contains a story described by vocalist Eric Tischler as being about "our responsibility, as citizens, when our government is out of control."
The music is direct power pop and the obvious reference here is the aforementioned Who, both in the sound of the music and the album-as-musical concept. Lyrically, one can't help thinking about Roger Waters, since the general theme of inane war and its inexorable influence on the family members of soldiers is spread across the three acts. The songs, such as "Maybe Love's a Transmission," explore a territory of aggressive, but not low fidelity (or poorly produced) garage pop.
"What Did You Do During The War, Daddy?" makes for an interesting read and listen. Anyone who is attached to the music of the Who and the Jam or anyone interested in songs and albums that have a purpose — which is all too rare these days — should check this LP out.