Jawdropped Announce Debut EP, Just Fantasy, Out April 25th via Angel Tapes / Fire Talk
Jawdropped — the freshly formed Los Angeles band helmed by Roman Zangari, Kyra Morling, and Sean Edwards — make “power pop featuring fuzzy, distortion pedaled power chords, thunderous drumming, big catchy hooks and saccharine sweet boy-girl harmonies” (The Joy of Violent Movement). Late last year, Jawdropped announced their signing to Fire Talk Records imprint Angel Tapes alongside their debut single, “Star,” which received praise from The Alternative, Northern Transmissions, Austin Town Hall and more. Today, Jawdropped return to announce their debut EP, Just Fantasy (out April 25th), and present their new single/video, “Skully.”
Just Fantasy is music for being late to work; music for hanging with your friends at the same bar you always go to, singing your favorite songs and drinking your favorite drinks; music for thinking about moving to New York, but never leaving LA. Recorded with little more than friendship and guitars, Just Fantasy is a five-track outing filled front-to-back with arena-ready rock. Jawdropped’s distinct take on grungy power pop is earnest and immediate, sung with a smirk on their face and fingers crossed behind their back. Anchored by friendship and a commitment to sing-along rock, Just Fantasy channels the hook-laden hits of Oasis and the amplified energy of The Get Up Kids and The Lemonheads.
Lead single “Skully” is forlorn and anthemic, exploding with walls of guitar before pulling back the feedback to reveal its heart. “You’re here when things fall apart, it’s just your nature,” vocalists Roman Zangari and Kyra Morling duet, “Some things you gotta savor.” Its accompanying video is directed by Rob Fraebel and Peter Lombardo, and collages live footage of Jawdropped performing and hanging out around their neighborhoods in Los Angeles. Of the track, the band says: “‘Skully’ is about feeling tethered to someone who isn’t good for you. Wanting to leave, but not knowing how. That little devil on your shoulder that keeps telling you to stick around for more, even though you know you shouldn’t.”
Watch Jawdropped’s “Skully” Video
Jawdropped formed just under a year ago in Los Angeles, California. Each member orbited one another in the city’s bubbling DIY community, trudging a trail of past projects that eventually brought the band together. Los Angeles courses through Just Fantasy, and its easy to imagine many of Jawdropped’s witticisms as overheard conversations at local haunts like Zebulon or Permanent Records. “I saw that your dad sent you money on Venmo, he said ‘Anything that’ll keep you stable!,” Morling sings on EP standout “Fantasy,” interstitching signposts of modernity between timeless platitudes. Elsewhere, Zangari sings of “vitamin deficiency, lack of sleep and ketamine,” satirizing the classic Los Angeles come-ups with celebratory melodies that burrow in the mind. The cheeky observations burrowed in Just Fantasy eschew the high horse, and instead poke fun from across the bar.It’s a balancing act between cynicism and optimism, forever falling apart but never giving up.
Next month, Jawdropped will perform at Permanent Records on March 21st, followed by an EP Release Show at Zebulon on May 2nd.
Pre-order Just Fantasy
Just Fantasy Tracklist
1. Skully
2. Another Day
3. Fantasy
4. Outside
5. Star
Jawdropped Live
Fri. March 21 - Los Angeles, CA @ Permanent Records
Fri. May 2 - Los Angeles, CA @ Zebulon
