A bittersweet love song that will play a serenade on your heartstrings
True to its title, it’s a track of divine indie-pop that finds the Oxford-via-Wales band harking back to the genre’s golden era.
For a track written in hell-on-earth (i.e. a traffic jam going over Henley Bridge as the band made their way to the studio one day), “Heavenly” defies all expectations with its saintly vocals, shimmering guitars and sunkissed melodies. A bittersweet love song that will play a serenade on your heartstrings, “Heavenly” is all “about the perils of falling for someone head-over-heels and how that plays out” says Jody.
Written and recorded on the same day in October of last year, the song is a beam of warmly fuzzy guitar pop laced with all the promises of new romance and new beginnings around the corner, yet spun with the reclusive cautiousness familiar to any indie kid finding their way. Earning a dedicated fan in the late broadcaster Janice Long, the new single was aired for the very first time when Jody & The Jerms were invited into what would be the DJ’s last ever live session on 20th December 2021, shortly before her passing. “Heavenly” is the lead single and opening track of Jody & The Jerms’ upcoming second album, ‘Flicker’ which they also announced today. Confirmed for release on 4th March 2022 via their own JATJ imprint, ‘Flicker’ arrives less than 18 months after the surprise hit of their lockdown-released debut ‘Deeper’.
Like resurfacing a lost reel of Super-8 from days long forgotten, ‘Flicker’ is as warmly nostalgic as it is endearingly pure. Nestling neatly somewhere between the pristine catalogues of Blondie, The Bangles and The Darling Buds, the Jerms deliver 13 fuzz-driven, love-lorn jangle-pop gems of the most classic kind. Songs of lost-loves and first-loves, escapism and outsiderdom are spun with a sanguine innocence and vivid relatability; Jody’s sweet-natured vocal perfectly paired with the dynamic musical arrangements of the Jerms.
From the dizzying rush of “Spinning” and its surreptitious key changes, to the tick/tock tensity of the heart-palpitating “Sensation”, the ambitious ‘Out of Time’-era R.E.M. anthemia of Jody/Niall duet “Forever Running”, through to the tender Kirsty MacColl-tinted piano balladry of the closer “High Times”; on ‘Flicker’ the Jerms flit through styles and influences with a nimble elegance and agile ability. Recorded at Safehouse Studios in St Clements Oxford, ‘Flicker’ was mastered at Swift Mastering, with additional mixing by the band’s Peter James Millson.
The result is a suite of jangle-pop songs to rival the best. As endlessly repeatable as they are evocatively relatable, Jody & The Jerms will release ‘Flicker’, via JATJ Records. Available digitally, plus on CD and vinyl, the physical editions will also feature bonus tracks: “Since Yesterday” and “Shiver” (Janice Long Session Version).
In support of the release, Jody & The Jerms will also be heading out on a tour of the UK and Spain in the Spring and Summer of 2022. Full dates and details are as follows, with more dates to be added soon:
JODY AND THE JERMS – FLICKER TOUR, 2022
April 16 – The Gate, Cardiff. Wales Goes Pop!
May 16-22 IPO Festival Cavern Club, Liverpool.
June 14 – York Vaults
June 15 – O’Reilly’s Hull
June 16 – Bullingdon, Oxford
June 17 – Beacon Festival Festival | The Beacon Festival | Watlington
July 2 – WeirFest, Somerset
Tickets are on sale now here:
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