The ripples from Jawbox's dive into the underground rock pond still splash up against the shores of our ears a few years after their breakup. They rocked hard and left a hearty wake. The phrase "sounds like Jawbox" has become as ubiquitous and misused as "sounds like Slint" in critical circles. There's even a Jawbox movie, "Savoring the Static," being made with Vince Vaughn, Janeane Garofalo, and Tom Cruise. I went to the set to discuss the new Burning Airlines CD with the stars.
Pitchfork: Do you guys know about Burning Airlines? It's the post- Jawbox band with J. Robbins and Bill Barbot, who I believe Vince and Tom are playing.
Vince Vaughn: Yes, I listen to it quite frequently in my trailer. I'm well past my phase of exclusively listening to bands of young Hollywood hunks, like P and Dogstar.
Tom Cruise: No. The studio really wanted a silly, typical, big- budget ending. At first, my character was supposed to snap, cut up his torso with a hunting knife, and blow up the Lincoln Memorial after one too many zine kids ask him, "What was it like being on a major label?" I thought that was a bit too much. Instead, they decided to go sappy and have some of us marry each other.
Janeane Garofalo: Well, I'm bitter at the world and even I like it. It's so good that I forget how lonely and manless I am.
Vince Vaughn: I was expecting it to be loud, full- on rock after hearing their debut 7". Kinda like a continuation of Jawbox. I was so pleasantly surprised at how pop it sounded.
Tom Cruise: So true. Those 7" songs are on the CD, but they're some of the most straight- forward rock songs on the CD. The rest is pop, as Vince said, yet it's also joyously experimental.
Tom Cruise: No, not at all. I mean that you can hear all the influences of D.C. peers infused into their sound. It's an amalgamation of everything from recent Fugazi and Kerosene 454 to the Dismemberment Plan and Smart Went Crazy-- there's even some Monorchid in there. People who say that the D.C. scene has weakened are chumps. This record could be the defining record of the late '90s D.C. scene.
Pitchfork: The drumming on "Pacific 231" and "Flood of Foreign Capital" bring to mind some of Smart Went Crazy's later stuff. It's really amazing. Drummer Pete Moffett's arms impressively play skittering breaks that would make Aphex Twin's Mac blush. Yet the songs are tighter than Cher's cheeks.
Vince Vaughn: Yeah, I was amazed at how tight the band is! For a trio, they go together better than mirepoix. Bill Barbot's move to bass is the greatest surprise. His nimble fingers and creative lines might put Kim Coletta to shame.
Pitchfork: Yeah, all the technical aspects are superb, but it's the songwriting that hooked me the most. The record is short and punchy. After one spin I knew all the songs, and looked forward to immediately going back through them. This is the most hook- laden record D.C. has produced in years. "The Escape Engine" stands out in my mind with those echoing "whoo- a- whoo- hoo's" in the background and that space- age snakecharmer solo.
Janeane Garofalo: It's not as solemn as Jawbox. There's just an overall air of energy and fun throughout the record. It makes me forget for a moment that I'm approaching 40 and still single.
Tom Cruise: The balance between liberal rock invention and traditional songwriting in the band is something that only decade- long veterans could forge. You forget that this a rookie release.
Pitchfork: Um... you're supposed to say, "Well, when something like this comes along, where all the great elements of indie rock, from Gang of Four to XTC to Helmet are mixed together, how could any human not like it?"
Disclaimer: This review is a work of satire. Naturally, this conversation never occured and, to our knowledge, there is no movie about Jawbox being released. Though we do think that Vince Vaughn as J. Robbins would be inspired casting.
