ALBUM REVIEW: Jo-Jo & The Teeth – No More Good News
(self-released)
Jo-Jo is Canadian singer Jo-Jo Donoghue, and The Teeth are the latest incarnation of reborn 1970s punks Eater, including founder member Andy Blade.
This is their debut album, and it’s a riff-filled record which mixes good old-fashioned pop hooks with blues, glam, rock ‘n’ roll and just a smidgeon of punk attitude.
They cite influences ranging from Queen, Ramones and Fleetwood Mac to the Rolling Stones and Aerosmith, but Jo-Jo’s voice is a very individual one indeed.
Beneath the over-the-top make-up lies a very powerful singer, and over the 10 tracks of this self-produced album, the band offer enough to suggest they could become a very big noise indeed.
Things kick off with the single My Babe, which showcases Jo-Jo’s vocals perfectly, and it’s followed by another single, the title track No More Good News.
HellHound, which seems to be about depression, is a mid-tempo bluesy number, while Moonchild slows things down even further, showing there’s more to JJ&TT than in-your-face bangers.
For me there are two standout songs here, the yearning Lungs, and Don’t Get Too Heavy, another single, whose chorus of “Dream on, dreamweavers” will be in your head for days.
Jo-Jo has a hell of a set of pipes, but needs to tone it down occasionally; the breathy Animals, for example, has too many vocal affectations for my liking, which makes it sound a bit X Factor-y.
The closing Oh Brother, with Jo-Jo’s voice front and centre over gentle acoustic backing instead of having to be heard over a maelstrom, offers a welcome change of pace and shows another side to her talents.
To be fair, she could probably sing the phone book and make it sound good, and she certainly marks herself out as one to watch on this enjoyable debut offering. 7.5/10.
