The 24-year-old maverick artist Jacco Gardner however is something else entirely, both light years ahead and 45 years behind his contemporaries. Syd Barrett was the initial flame that set the mind of this young Dutch native alight. In Barrett’s winsome arrangements and surreal wordplay he saw the possibilities of being able to recreate the shimmering childish delight and nightmarish fear of old 70's fairytale-like films like the Czechoslovakian masterpiece Valerie A Týden Divu by Jaromil Jires, the Swedish Bröderna Lejonhjärta and the sweet yet surreal patina of Studio Ghibli in music. Curt Boettcher, the similarly tortured American sunshine pop legend, is cited equally. And indeed, it is the disparate combination of the pastoral Lewis Carroll vision of London’s Middle Earth club combined with frighteningly complex Californian pocket symphonies that are signature in Gardner’s impressively detailed pieces. Cabinet Of Curiosities’ instrumental title track is certainly reminiscent of the best of Curt Boettcher's projects like The Millennium and Sagittarius with its playful baroque arrangements whilst ‘Puppets Dangling’ has a steely retro futurism, part Broadcast, part United States Of America, but with a far more delicate approach that recalls Nirvana or teenage Immediate signing Billy Nicholls. A toytown popsike feel is resplendent in ‘The Ballad Of Little Of Jane’ which has been rarely heard since Mark Wirtz did his thing at Abbey Road, Jeff Lynne was learning his craft with The Idle Race and Klaatu were being mistaken for The Beatles.
Recorded and engineered at his "Shadow Shoppe" Studio in Zwaag, The Netherlands, Cabinet Of Curiosities features Jacco playing every instrument (save the drums, deftly played by Jos van Tol) and was pre-mastered by Jan Audier – famed engineer of Dutch garage/psych heavies Q65, The Golden Earrings and The Motions on his vast array of authentic ’60s analogue gear. Of his treasured items Jacco says: “I own a couple of Hohner Pianets, the same ones The Zombies used. I also love my cheap Dutch Philips transistor Philicorda organ a lot. Another keyboard that I’m really glad to have is my Optigan organ, which is similar to the Mellotron and makes use of recorded samples on a disk that sound really spooky and lo-fi. When using very mechanical instruments, like the Hohner Pianet, it will always beat using a virtual plugin version on your computer.”
Distinctly Dutch, marked by the damp, chilly air and melancholic longing of ’60s masters Group 1850 but also utterly 2013, Gardner is on par with the finest new artists, yet somehow more honest and in awe of the source material with a keener ear for a strong tune than many of his peers. He’s definitely an emerging talent unafraid to follow his own unique path.
After two strong singles last year that caught the attention of everyone from Shindig! to Pitchfork and NME the next step in Baroque pop has arrived. Jacco Gardner’s Cabinet Of Curiosities is a box of delights of intricately crafted melodies guaranteed to conjure visions of sugar plum fairies and fireside stories from even the dullest imagination.
TOUR DATES
JANUARY
10 Eurosonic, Groningen (NL) w/ Temples
12 Noorderslag, Groningen (NL)
24 VPRO filmnacht IFFR, Rotterdam (NL)
30 Subbacultcha! @ OT301, Amsterdam (NL) w/ Silhouettes + Earth MK II
FEBRUARY
02 Manifesto, Hoorn (NL)
08 Subbacultcha! @ dB's, Utrecht (NL) w/ Earth MK II
09 Merleyn, Nijmegen (NL) w/ traumahelikopter
13 Trix, Antwerpen (BE) w/ Cosmonauts
14 Prinzenbar, Berlin (GE) w/ Zulu Pearls
15 TBA - Cologne (GE)
16 Supermarkt, Den Haag (NL)
18 013, Tilburg (NL) w/ Dignan Porch
21 Monsieur Moustage, Brussel (BE) w/ Cosmonauts
22 La Mécanique Ondulatoire, Paris (FR) w/ Dead Ghosts
23 De Klos, Emmeloord (NL)
MARCH - US
01 Wesleyan University - Middletown CT
02 Death By Audio - Brooklyn, NY
03 Middle East Upstairs - Boston, MA
06 Golden West - Baltimore, MD
07 The Pinhook - Durham, NC
08 Savannah Stopover Festival - Savannah, GA
10 E.A.R.L. - Atlanta, GA w/ Turbo Fruits
12 till 17 – SXSW, Austin, TX
18 The Bishop - Bloomington, IN
19 Empty Bottle - Chicago, IL
20 Case Western Reserve University - Cleveland, OH w/ Dirty Ghosts
23 Mercury Lounge, New York, NY (Early show)
UK
31 - Le Beat Bespoké, London (UK)
APRIL
04 Haldern Pop Bar - Haldern (DE)
05 Metropool - Hengelo (NL)
06 Motel Mozaique festival - Rotterdam (NL
JACCO GARDNER
Cabinet Of Curiosities
Cabinet Of Curiosities
Cat. No: TIM047
Formats: LP/CD/Download
Release Date: February 2013
Release Date: February 2013
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