In the last few years we've seen a surge to recreate several genres. Mars Volta made lengthy jams cool again and bands like Jet brought back old school ballsy rock. While I can't say anything Jet does at this point is revolutionary, since they aren't adding anything new to their recreation, Jet has improved. If you haven't heard a song from Jet before then you are probably deaf. Over the last few years Jet has been featured in every type of commercial as well as being a non-stop staple on rock and alternative radio. With their long awaited, yet triumphant return, Jet will once again be everywhere.Shine On takes what their last LP Get Born supplied and, for the lack of a better term, kicks it up to 11. I was a fan of Get Born but I always felt it lacked something and I only ended up liking a few songs on the CD. On their new disc, Jet channels the same inspirations of Zeppelin, Beatles, Stones, Who, and even a little Skynyrd and makes a CD of more continuity. I actually feel like there is a purpose to this CD and that it's in general going somewhere.
The first single from the album, "Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is" hardly even sounds like Jet until they barrel into their typical huge chorus. The beginning features a guitar riff similar to The Who and then goes into some impressive falsetto vocals that work very well. This song is just straight up classic rock, as with several other tracks like "Vacation", "That's All Lies", "Stand Up", and "Rip It Up". One of the best things I can say about any follow up CD is keep some signature sound, but change! Change is a good thing! Jet, while solely constricting themselves to the sounds of classic rock, does allow some change for the better.
One of the stand out tracks from Get Born was their semi-ballad "Look What You've Done". Unfortunately there weren't as many strong tracks featuring this change in tempo. But a good portion of Shine On is spent exploring their softer side. This is definitely where you are going to hear the biggest influence from bands like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. The opening track "L'Espirit D'Escalier", while short, is definitely in the vein of the Beatles. While slower tempo tracks and ballads are a bit more in abundance on this CD, tracks like "Elenor", "All You Have to Do", and the title track Shine On thankfully are not the a-typical sappy love song.
If you are a fan of classic rock, you definitely feel jaded by today's music and you live mostly in the past. Hey, there's nothing wrong with still wearing a Zeppelin shirt! But if you are in need of something new and fresh then definitely check out Jet. You'd have to be pretty doped up on drugs to think they are Zeppelin or the Beatles, but then again, drugs helped shape that genre of music.
