Jacob King – Merry Locker
A fixture in Buffalo’s music scene for several years, folk artist Jacob King has been a restless creative, lending his talents to projects like T.T.T.T. and Hal & Pals while pouring his own steady stream of singles, EPs, ‘zines, and poetry. With his debut solo LP, Merry Locker, it feels like we’re finally getting the clearest transmission from his particular wavelength. The album, released June 27th on his own The New Disposable label, is pure psych-folk, and its sound is as raw and atmospheric as the foggy Lake Erie harbor pictured on its cover. It’s a direct invitation into King’s cryptic, hazy world, and it’s our album of the week.
What struck me first about Merry Locker is the texture. The entire album feels warm and lived-in, humming with the fuzzy crackle of an old vinyl record. The production is lo-fi at times, but never lazy. Most tracks are built around the intricate dance between King’s acoustic guitar strumming and the impressive dexterity of his voice, calling to mind the pastoral storytelling of Donovan or the weirder folk stylings of Devendra Banhart.
The journey through Merry Locker is a dynamic one, starting with title track “Buoy Song/ The Merry Locker,” which immediately establishes the album’s folk-storyteller core. King’s voice shifts from a gentle murmur in the first half to a soaring cry towards the end, showcasing that range right from track one. The foundation of acoustic guitar and voice carries through much of the record, from the delicate fingerpicked melodies on “Onions” to the poetic confessional closing track “Window.”
King consistently veers off this path into wilder territories, and to brilliant effect. “Icicle” is a highlight of this experimental spirit, using beer-bottle percussion and layered vocals to create a sound reminiscent of early Panda Bear. He steers into darker moods on “Tangles,” which erupts with a chaotic electric guitar solo, and captures a lonely, cavernous beauty with the waltzing “Like Orbiting Planets.” King finds a centerpiece in “Queen Guillotine,” a lush five-minute track where the warm production and full-band harmonies create the record’s most immersive and accessible moment.
Merry Locker is a must listen, a confident and compelling introduction from Jacob King with hidden layers and strange charms. He operates within the established traditions of psych-folk, yet avoids the pitfalls of imitation by injecting his work with a personal, almost hermetic, strangeness. It’s a formula that works well in the case of his debut, and is unlike anything Buffalo has heard in a long time.
Categorised in: Album of the Week
This post was written by Ronald Walczyk