There has been a short history of one-man comedy rock bands. Atom and His Package and Har-Mar Superstar come to mind immediately. Grampall Jookabox takes this genre to the next level through David “Moose” Adamson of Indianapolis.
Jookaboz trail began with Adamson and his uncle, who would mix four tracks and write rhymes over the rhythms. Slowly Adamson’s skills and list of equipment grew until he had what was necessary take his show on the road, and that’s just what he did.
In July of 2007 Grampall Jookabox released his first album Scientific Cricket. Since then he’s released an EP, Rill Brush, in MP3 format, and his latest full-length album, Ropechain.
Ropechain touches on many genres including R&B, Hip-Hop, Soul, Rock, and Punk. It also embraces many themes including insanity and the paranormal all with a twinge of neurotic comedy. This album is enjoyable on a comic level with songs like “The Girl Ain’t Preggers,” it’s chorus crooning, “Oh, now don’t it make you feel good / when the girl ain’t preggers” and it’s various verses, which start off expressing gratitude toward anti-pregnancy and slowly lament into pro-pregnancy. The song, “I Will Save Young Michael,” is about Michael Jackson and Adamson’s brotherhood ties as natives of Indiana.
Grampall Jookabox can be described as unique, visionary, innovative, resourceful and maybe a little bit crazy. All of these come together to make Grampall Jookabox one of the craziest, most entertaining acts in music today.
I had the pleasure of seeing Grampall Jookabox at this year’s Monolith and came away with a smile and appreciation for the innovation and showmanship of Adamson. As a one-man band, Adamson relies heavily on the use of music loops, which he records right before your eyes. Loop after loop, his songs build, and once they’re going, it’s evident that Adamson is the only band member needed. Even playing several instruments simultaneously, Adamson still finds the time and talent to march, dance, and skip around the stage. Truly, this is genius showmanship.
You can see Grampall Jookabox at Hi-Dive on Tuesday, November 18.
http://www.myspace.com/grampalljookabox
www.joyfulnoiserecordings.com
