JACK THE STRIPPER - Raw Nerve

11 songs
33:08 minutes
***** **
(self-released)

Bandpage

Melbourne based band Jack The Stripper have been founded in 2007. In their early days, they concentrated their energies on their native Australia, where their first EP Black Annis came out in 2009, followed four years later by the longplayer Raw Nerve. Next up they tried conquering nearby Asia, especially Japan. Then it took them another three years before the album saw the light of day in Europe. Actually a shame, considering what promising talent lures in the band.

Those who like chaotic hardcore, extreme metal and artists like Dillinger Escape Plan, Fear Factory and the likes should continue reading. The songs are quite compact and contain despite their concise lengths a lot of twists and turns. At one moment, they play it really fast, before they surprise you with a sludgy part. Violent emo outbursts and complex djent parts also belong to Jack The Stripper’s repertoire. Right from the first note, Raw Nerve grips the listener by the throat and demands all of their attention. The songs are full of unexpected events that you didn’t see coming. The four Australians treat their instruments uncompromisingly and create a wall of sound that seems impenetrable. There are hardly any moments of respite, apart from a few quiet sounds at the end of Track Marks, which is followed by Black Hole Fetish / Love Is Cheap that sees the band trying their hand at progressive thrash metal. The vocals are alas somewhat monotonous and all the time too raw and angry. On the one hand this fits well with the music, but on the other hand it grows a bit old, despite the album’s short running time.

Jack The Stripper have been named after a serial killer who was active in London during the mid-Sixties, and just like the similarly named Jack The Ripper, chose prostitutes as his victims. The band has set a sign with Raw Nerve, an album with a perfect title. Despite being only a little over half an hour long, it takes some stamina to listen through it in one go. Maybe that’s where the vinyl version comes in handy, so that you can listen to the first side, then take a break before venturing further to the second side.