Since arriving in Montreal six years ago, Paul Jacobs has cemented a growing reputation as one of the city’s truly wild, eccentric artists, both as the drummer of Pottery and through fronting his own six-piece band. He’s known for creating multiple albums annually that served as companion pieces to his live performances. A musician, painter, animator and DIY home studio wizard, Jacobs has thrilled sweaty audiences in his adopted hometown with his infamously raw live gigs. Performing live for over a decade with every ounce of rage and energy that he has, Jacobs is ready to reveal a new technicolour side of his songwriting. Following a prolific run of garage rock releases, Pink Dogs on the Green Grass, his expansive new solo album mastered by Oliver Ackermann of A Place To Bury Strangers, will be released 11th June on Blow the Fuse Records.
After spending time in a conventional studio environment with Pottery, Jacobs went back to the familiar: recording at home. As one can hear on Pink Dogs on the Green Grass, it was the perfect, warm environment to delve into ultra-catchy grooves and spaced-out ballads. From the Tame Impala-tinged opener “Christopher Robbins” (written by Paul on bongos) to psychedelic oddities like “Dancing with the Devil” and “Cherry” (an ode to the colour red) to the stunning Alice-in-Wonderland-like acoustic song “Underneath The Roses”, Pink Dogs on the Green Grass is an album that is both wonderfully diverse and delightfully cohesive.
Jacobs’ songwriting was inspired by those unwanted moments in life that stick with you, such as unexpected encounters and bizarre situations that repeat themselves in your dreams. After wanting for a long time to marry his love of psychedelic, timeless studio recordings with his independent, rebellious indie spirit, Jacob’s apartment studio allowed him to use acoustic drums and to explore with more organic sounds. Although the creation process – of writing, working on over 40 half-finished demos and recording – took over Jacob’s life for a while, the album is a refined 13-track collection of ageless, yet modern melodies inspired by folk acts past and present, with a twist of current technologies and topics. His sound includes the hooks and rhythms you’d expect from classic rock legends such as The Byrds, Fleetwood Mac, and Neil Young, while staying true to his unconventional personal style of composition and production you’d find with artists like Arthur Russel, Kurt Vile and Daniel Johnston
From deep emotional melodies to freak out jams, folk pop ballads to synth laced rock and roll epics, along with his hand drawn artwork and animated music videos, Paul Jacobs truly creates a unique world of his own.
