JIM JONES AND THE RIGHTEOUS MIND | LIVE REVIEW
Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff, Thurs 26 Jan
Jim Jones doesn’t like to let the grass grow under his feet. His musical career to date has consisted of several incarnations including Black Moses and Thee Hypnotics. Having released three banging albums as The Jim Jones Revue, he disbanded his old group in 2015 to the dismay of many. Fans needn’t have worried though as Jim likes to reboot and it wasn’t long before he returned with this latest manifestation which takes its name from a book about social psychology.
The Righteous Mind, written by Jonathan Haidt, portrays the theme of “decent, good people” going to war with each other without really knowing why: a mood Jones was going for, to describe his venturing into new, dark and uncharted musical waters. With two EPs under his belt, this tour is a prequel to the LP due later this year. It’s not a huge departure from his previous output – scuzzy punk blues with a sleazy, grinding sound. This time round he’s joined by Gavin Jay on bass, Mal Troon on guitar and pedal steel, Matt Millership on piano and Phil Martini on drums.
The Keys having whetted appetites for the headliners with their brilliant slacker-psych sound, Jim Jones took to the stage with welcoming cries of “we love you” – because of his slightly Welsh sounding surname, he joked. Whipping a crowd into a frenzy on a cold January weeknight would be a challenge for anyone, but the relatively small crowd were certainly entranced. I’ve never been surrounded by such a high proportion of gyrating middle-aged men, and it’s not an experience I want to repeat – but they seemed to be having a lovely time.
No-one was phased by the fact that this was a set of totally new material, the dancing not letting up once. I was starting to wonder whether he’s put some sort of dancing voodoo hex on the crowd. I, though, wasn’t as convinced. On paper there was everything I like: lap steel, honky-tonk piano and an outspoken, left-leaning frontman. But in reality it just didn’t deliver.
There were odd moments of atmosphere, certainly: the chain gang a capella version of Hold Up did show some soul. They’ve certainly got energy and Jim Jones talked a lot about spirit, but for me it’s a no.
words GRACE TODD