Two years ago Joshua Kenneth Grierson changed his on-stage moniker to Jak Tomas and pressed the reset button on the folk-rock continuum he had been navigating since 2004.
Cut to 2020 and he’s just released his debut Jak Tomas album, Of Love & Anxiety. It’s a visceral chronicle of life and love in the times of the 21st century – and all the anxiety which comes along with it. For the month of June it is only available for purchase on Bandcamp and the first 30 people to get their foot in the door will get his 42-track best of an old name album for free. By July it will be up on all streaming platforms.
The word which comes to mind when it comes to this release is subtlety – in its finest form. From the echoing, untethered strains of opening track “Enemy” – which navigates a toxic relationship, to the pillowy melancholia of “I Was Just A Kid/ With A Crush”, he finds balance between soundscapes and thematic cohesion.
“Episode Breeze” is a chiming piano meditation. “Hollis” treads a similar trajectory with organ-synths easing out a contemplative palate cleanser – while “The Legalities of Romance” lay out just those over a silvery undercurrent of sound.
It’s about loving and being loved, delivered with casual conviction of richly textured sonic highways which never overwhelm.