There’s an audible dream on show throughout Jarrow’s self-titled third album that saturates the record from start to finish. It’s the same dream frontman Dan Oke has been writing about and embodying through his Jarrow discography for years - but something about it has changed on this latest offering. It’s less so the post-adolescent, determined catharsis of his breakout records 2003 Dream and Expensive Hugs, and more so a calm, dejected acceptance of what holding onto a kind of dreamlike musical ambition really means. This all sounds a little gloomy on the surface, but it’s precisely where the strength of Jarrow as a record lies. There’s a directness to Oke’s confessionalism that’s far more striking this time around. 

Nothing that makes Jarrow exceptional has been lost here, mind. The grit, the upbeat, clever musicianship and the laugh-out-loud humour of previous releases has been doubled down on, refined and explored further to the point where Oke is as close as it gets with this collection of odd, witty songs to providing the listener with both a sonic portrait of himself and what a countless number of other young songwriters lives’ look like simultaneously. Opener ‘Treason’ delineates Oke’s reflective grapple with ideas of success and artistry: “..waiting for something that’s not going to happen… if the future is at all worth repeating, there’s no use in reason.” Gone is the spirit of hopeful anticipation that permeated earlier Jarrow records, instead replaced with a veracity that’s far more authentic and engaging. The album’s best song, ‘MPH’, details the ownership of his old passed-down Commodore, and how it’s shelf life runs parallel to and eventually coalesces with Oke’s overarching sense of experience and musical pragmatism. It's in moments like these where the record shines bright.

It’s been apparent since Jarrow’s 2015 debut that Oke is the most self aware lyricist in Melbourne, and that’s no exception here. What’s perhaps most impressive about him as a songwriter is how he utilises contemporary, internet-borne colloquialisms to break down the third wall, wrapping them up amongst his more poignant lyricism and urgent musicianship in a manner that never feels disingenuous - rather, it’s as if you’re having a conversation with him over Messenger while listening. Album closer ‘Default Dance’ is perhaps the best example of Jarrow’s distinctive ability to pair the banal with the significant, where modern absurdities are matched with life and death to ensure the listener is as reflective as Oke is: “…eight hour YouTube compilations wearing me down… what if all of this was pointless? It’s the prospect of an early grave when I sell my soul.”

Jarrow is a special record because Dan’s heart is on show. He’s a special artist, and we’re frankly pretty lucky to have someone like him lay bare his dreams so honestly for us to ponder over, to enjoy and to find something to discover about ourselves in the process. Trouble Juice is stoked to have him give us a track by track walkthrough with a twist; he’s drawn us a picture for each track. 


TREASON - Clock

I think you need a great deal of patience to create and share new things in the 21st century. Self sabotaging yourself trying to one-up your past efforts is a waste of time, no one person or thing will change that and it’s not worth the emotional energy thinking about it too deeply. ‘Treason’ is me telling myself not to worry about what I’m doing and not to sit and wait for things to fall into your lap because it’s unrealistic. 


KEEP A TAB (ON ALL MY FRIENDS) - Laptop

Staying afloat with personal relationships is something I’ve always struggled with. ‘KAT’ is a reflection on my efforts to check in on people regardless of work or other distractions. I think there’s a lot of benefits that come from maintaining a healthy balance between interacting with other people and focusing on yourself, your projects and your vices. On the flip side - taking time off from the outside world is completely fair as well. 


SAUCE SONG - Bottle

Once I have a good idea for the lyrics of a song, the whole thing comes together super quickly. The story of meeting a man named Sauce at a random house in Wollongong was a long-running inside joke between myself and the Jband, so it was inevitable that it would make its way into my music. I love the notion of obsessing over completely random things without comprehension - this tune is no exception.


MPH - Car

An ode to my first car - a 2002 Holden Commodore. It originally belonged to my dad, then passed down to yours truly after I started learning how to drive. The vehicle had a long, turbulent history with multiple breakdowns and a stupid amount of technical faults that usually left me feeling deflated and annoyed, but in hindsight looking back through the nostalgia lens I miss that car heaps and heaps. It’s nice that the car can at least be remembered fondly through the medium of song.


WDT? - Smashed bowl

This track is an ode to drama, ‘first world problems’ and the mundane nature of getting upset over random shit that is meaningless in the grand scheme of things. Basically a song about crying over spilt milk. Nothing and nobody is perfect, we are all single grains in the sandbox of life and knowing when to pick your battles is important. We all have the power to learn, improve and reflect on our actions without blaming other people or external sources.


EASTER - Twilight DVD

Another true story based on an embarrassing experience I had travelling as a young lass with my family in the USA. I’ve wanted to do a spoken word track for a Jarrow album from the very beginning, so it was fun to finally put one together for this release. The original version of this song was a lot noisier and aggressive, but dialling it all back meant that it was less distracting to hear the reading in the track. Definitely planning to do more of this for a different project in the future.


PRODUCT - Piggy bank

One of my favourite things is being able to share my music with others, but for me it doesn’t matter how big that number of people is. That’s not why I started Jarrow in the first place. For this song I wanted to jot down my observations of the Australian music industry after feeling a bit jaded by the whole album campaign process and trying to place myself on a bigger pedestal than I deserved. Not a diss track about anyone in particular – just a lukewarm take on the system.

FLOWERBED – Flowerbed

Not based on my own parents, but written from the perspective of a family who are overly protective of their offspring. The outside world is a scary place that could make or break you, best to be cautious and stay true to yourself. It covers a lot of the lyrical and tonal aspects of Jarrow so it made sense to drop this as the first single. A lot of the beds I sleep on also have flower patterns on the doona covers, but I’m also a big fan of the wordplay so it was a happy coincidence. 

DEFAULT DANCE – House

My first sharehouse was a tiny duplex nestled in the tiny suburb of Travancore (north-west of Melbourne). Jobless and coinless I spent months not leaving my room, eating junk food, playing video games and avoiding all contact with the outside world. The irony is now the entire world is experiencing a similar hell. The only upside that kept me going during that time was making this album happen, pouring all my creative energy into my best nine songs. Made a lot of sense to end the record with this track.