16 December 2014 - 0 Comments

Dark and light. Quirky but serious. Melodic but jarring. These are the moods created by The Funny Side, the new - free - single from Jackal's upcoming fifth album set to be released early next year, coming your way via Outer Space Publicity.

The Funny Side was written in late 2013, shortly after the release of Jackal's most recent record Castle in the Air, and has quickly become one of the popular live band’s most played (and requested) live songs.

The song originated with guitar player Will McGrath, written while travelling in America last year. About his aims with the song, Will says, "I was interested in a Jackal perspective on a pop-song structure. [Editor’s note: not their usual genre!]. When I took my initial ideas to the band, they put an almost jazzy feel to it."

Vocalist/guitarist/brother Theo McGrath says of the light/dark interplay within the song, 'Will and I never really talked about the meaning of the song when we were writing the lyrics; we didn't want to be influenced by each other’s ideas. I took Will's chorus lyrics and tried to flesh out what I thought it meant into a kind of list of everyday frustrations. Sometimes life events can be big and dramatic, but most of the things that get you down are actually pretty boring: paying the bills, getting your car fixed, worrying if other people like you.'

For a young band, Jackal already has a remarkable recorded legacy behind them, and an extraordinary commitment to music. Jackal formed in late 2006 when brothers Will (on drums) and Theo McGrath (on guitar and vocals) joined up with local bassist Alec Cummins. They began writing their own material immediately, setting out to meld a raw punk/alternative sound, inspired by bands such as Dinosaur Jr, with their love of Black Sabbath and ‘70s hard rock.

Earlier this year, the band was selected for an international compilation, Progstravaganza – ‘Prog Sphere’s Compilation of Awesomeness’. These compilations have had 50,000 downloads and have followers right around the world – largely in Europe. Check out the Bandcamp page here; and if you want to know what the ProgSphere audience heave learned about Jackal, there’s a good interview here. If you want to hear more from this inspiring young band, here's their latest album Castle in the Air. 

Vote for The Funny Side by Jackal on theaudience.co.nz

The Funny Side is available as a free download at JackalBand.com

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