Review: Glassjaw

Glassjaw
“Worship and Tribute”
(Warner)

Shocking. Amazing. Riffs that lead your ears to a brick wall, tricking them at the last second to watch your bewilderment. These and other side affects of an afternoon listening to “Worship and Tribute” will likely occur, should you decide to purchase this album. The first listen to this (and any Glassjaw album) will bring up deja vu memories of stuffing Incubus, Rival Schools, Mr. Bungle’s Mike Patton, and some enriched Uranium into a can, closing the lid, shaking hard, and examining the results. Beautiful, sometimes brutal, and always pushing it’s way to the front of the musical version of Mensa, Glassjaw stop to ask for directions; instead, vocalist Daryl Palumbo and guitarist Justin Beck dip your auditory glands into a musical euphoria. About the only thing that can bring GJ down a notch is that the virgin listener needs to be able to taste good music, or they will skip this band after a song. Like a ten year old glass of whiskey, “Worship and Tribute” require a sit down with a clear head to really appreciate it. Hailing from Long Island, and recently jumping labels (they used to be on Roadrunner), Glassjaw has been seen on tour with bands like Poison the Well and New Found Glory, and while they’re only on their second album, they can be seen on this years Warped Tour AND Ozzfest. They were on tour with the Deftones, something that probably influences the slight harmonic and more solid drumming in this album. I always confuse Glassjaw with Jawbreaker. Not sure why, aside from the shared “jaw”. So, go to Glassjaw.com, download their MP3 of “Ape Dos Mil”, sit back and pull a tube. While this single is probably the tamest off “Worship and Tribute”, it’s a good sample of the broad wavelength GJ encompasses. This is a must buy.