JEFF The Brotherhood - We Are The Champions

Man all I wanna do is play some fucking video games but all this schoolwork piled up the week before break and I haven't had time to do anything but study my ass off. And so is life. However, now that I'm back onto the review scene, I'll try to update at a regular pace.

JEFF The Brotherhood is a unique musical duo from Tennessee. Brothers Jake and Jamin Orrall are the masterminds behind the music, and although they're only recently bursting onto the indie rock scene, they've got quite a few limited releases under their belt stretching all the way back to 2002. On We Are The Champions, JEFF The Brotherhood combines elements of psychedelic and garage rock with punk and old school '70s and '80s heavy metal.

"Hey Friend" is the definition of the latter heavy metal style and sets high standards for JEFF's latest excursion (ironically . After all this is the type of music that JEFF The Brotherhood excels at. Going into We Are The Champions I was expecting a more cohesive doomy, psychedelic rock album. I was caught off guard when the punk beats and four-chord progression on "Cool Out" came on. The frustrated riffing and down-toned progression made the out-of-nowhere blast beat ending feel that much more appropriate. Tracks like "Bummer," "Diamond Way," and to an extent "Wastoid Girl" however are much more low-intensity and reminiscent of older Weezer. These tracks are more dull, less inspired, and honestly dripping with insipidity. I've always hated Weezer and their ilk for that reason.

There are a few more gems on We Are The Champions though. "Shredder" is a personal favorite, combining punk-esque rhythms with schizoid guitars. "Ripper" brings back that classic heavy metal and psychedelic rock sound, with trippy sounds, structures, and noise lacing slow doomy riffs. The whole album is in fact layered with a degree of fuzz and noise. In fact if there's one word I'd use to describe We Are The Champions it would be "FUZZY." The album is noisy, not too heavy, and caked in effects, like early heavy metal. Although technically indie rock, the punk and heavy metal influence leads to an easy, and relaxed, listening experience that has some redeeming features despite the more derivative tracks.

7.0 out of 10

Tracklisting:
1.  Hey Friend
2.  Cool Out
3.  Bummer
4.  Shredder
5.  Diamond Way
6.  Endless Fire
7.  Ripper
8.  Mellow Out
9.  Stay Up Late
10. Health and Strength
11. Wastoid Girl