Jae Tyler Digest is a fun collection of pop tunes that are not for the hard-headed listeners out there. The tracks are great, and Jae does not take himself too seriously, which gives this album a lot of personality. I mean, you should not have to listen to a second of this album to figure that out – just look at the cover! I will steal from his Bandcamp here because how he describes himself is truly the perfect intro to this post.
“Kansas bred art-boy, Jae Tyler now lives in Berlin where he makes disturbingly fun lo-fi pop music inspired by the coming end of days. Finding equal inspiration from classical composers and 80’s-90’s radio as he does the redneck culture whence he came, Jae Tyler turns his white trash genetics into Euro trash aesthetics.” Again, if you are offended by this, Jae Tyler Digest is not for you. Or, maybe the album will loosen you up, so maybe it is. Anyway, let’s get into it.
‘Exercise’ is the song I need to wake up to every morning. The overall sound is uplifting and energizing, while the lyrics are straight up motivational facts. “Exercise / Exercise / Never forget the importance of exercise” and “Every time you feel like you wanna die / Learn to breath / You’re alive / Gotta get out of the house and (exercise)”. Definitely a track that can push you to get the best out of the start of your day.
The catchiness continues on ‘Famous’, a smooth track that is one of the best on the album. It contains my favourite vocal performance as every time the chorus hits I feel like singing along. The simple guitar solo near the end of the song is a nice touch, and going into this album I did not expect to get this (foreshadowing here: the guitar will be back a few times).
Next we reach ‘Speed’, which is aptly titled. It does not goo 100 miles per hour for the full 3:52, but it is definitely there for most of the track. We also get a quick guitar solo for the second time in a row here. It did not feel like it was necessary, as in the track would be fine without it, but I think its inclusion brought the song to the next level and helped make it another favourite of mine.
Fast forward to ‘Nuclear Holocaust Party Anthem 2021’ and you will get a song loaded with infectious synth grooves that are hard not to move to. If global conflicts continue to heat up over the next couple years, this will be a go-to song for the occasion.
The rest of the album is much of the same, in a good way. I would write about it more, but it will just be “fun”, “synth grooves”, “catchy” and stuff like that ad nauseam. So, to use those phrases one last time: if you are looking for a fun and uplifting (just ignore some of the lyrical themes…) release, that is loaded with personality and is easy to groove to, definitely check out Jae Tyler Digest.
Favourite Tracks: Famous, Speed, Nuclear Holocaust Party Anthem 2021, Latexx
Release Date: January 24, 2020