Hailing from the sparkling Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia, Burning Jacobs Ladder is a project by multi-instrumentalist songwriter Jake T Johnson, and his new single ‘Danger in Me’ is a rocket-fueled burner that seethes and prowls with swagger and attitude. Barley restrained feedback and a hint of malevolence underpin this track, Johnson’s voice, seeped in disdain and long dark nights, is deep and sonorous, driven by an insistent rhythm and percussion. The gothic, fuzzy undertones and black-leather clad sneers deliciously recall Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and The Jesus and Mary Chain.
Johnson says of the track:
‘Danger In Me’ was written, recorded and mixed at my home studio on the Gold Coast of Australia. Musically I wanted something dark and ominous so used a drop tuning on the guitar work. I wanted the song to have an abundance of energy throughout so there is a lack of dynamics to the song as whole. Lyrically the track is about the side of you that you don’t like and you try to bury. You doubt your own decisions and try to escape from them and the environment that you find yourself in. In the end, you are longing for something you know is harmful and being torn between the two.
The visceral and raw edge provides a pulse quickening thrum, the squawling end a fitting denouement:
This is wonderfully louche, cathartic rock’n’roll and you can download/stream it here.
‘Danger in Me’ comes off Burning Jacobs Ladder’s EP named EP/1 released back in February and sadly overlooked by me in the rush. The EP is thoroughly brilliant and available to download and stream here, and you can have a listen below:
