Jake McMullen at Yost Last Night

Jake McMullen
Nov. 13, 2010
Yost Bar

It was hard to tell that the show at the Yost on Friday was Jake McMullen's first show. The band, made up of members of the Relative Strangers and the Steelwells and 17-year-old McMullen, played a tight, entertaining set that showed few signs on inexperience. 

Other than the fact that McMullen looked at his moccasins most of the night, one would not be able to guess this was the band's first time on stage together. Their short set consisted of the songs off of the Wonder EP, which was officially released at the show on Friday.

“Eight” really stood out as a pretty and uplifting song. It would make for a great soundtrack to a fast drive down PCH on a sunny day. It had beautiful, ethereal keyboard.

 

They covered “Gravity” by John Mayer, which really showed off McMullen's folky quivering voice. He channeled Mayer well, and nailed the punchy “Gravity” lyric. It was a faithful tribute, but the band was still able to make it sound like their own.

They ended the set with “Soul” which had a more upbeat tempo that was driven by the keyboardist. It drew comparisons to the Temper Trap.

Though Molly Marlette played a great set opening for McMullen, her voice was underutilized in McMullen's “Just Across the Pond.” Her earlier set showed off her strong voice, but as a guest singer, it was flat and added little more to the song than having a pretty girl on the stage. She sang her small portion of the lyrics off of a folded piece of paper.

Electronicmeat was supposed to open for McMullen, but cancelled. Molly Marlette, who was supposed to contribute to their set, sang with a guitarist instead. The guitarist jokingly dubbed their duet, “Acoustic Meat,” though he used an electric guitar the whole set. Like her fellow redhead Florence Welch, she had a strong, booming voice. 

The Hindu Pirates opened the evening with a solid surf punk set. They walked down a road already paved by the Growlers, but were entertaining. 

Critic's Bias: I interviewed McMullen last week.

The Crowd: A modest gathering of McMullen's peers. 

Random Notebook Dump: Why was everyone sitting?

Good Morning

Pretty Folks

Just Across the Pond

Gravity

Eight