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Photo by Lauren Segal

11/07/2020

Jerry Joiner aka Girlfriends: After 10 years of silence, the multi-instrumentalist teases hopeful new content

 By GAVIN MAJESKI // Will Jerry Joiner/Girlfriends' new album drop in December? Maybe. Maybe not.

In 2009, multi-instrumentalist and Portland, Oregon native Jerry Joiner released his debut self-titled album under the stage name “Girlfriends.” The 11-track record runs just under 30-minutes and is filled with youthful exuberance and pop-punk energy, yet instrumentally stands out from your cookie-cutter pop punk expectations.

Utilizing irregular time signatures and finger tapping rather than guitar strumming, Joiner’s record feels more akin to the subgenre of math rock than anything else. But where Joiner truly stands out is with how he blends his shouted vocals and math rock riffs with synthesized electronic loops, creating a one of a kind listening experience. Similarly to math rock and midwestern emo contemporaries, Joiner included instrumental cuts on the record, displaying just how well he can carry a track from technical instrumentation ability alone.

After a decade of silence, Joiner announced in winter of 2019 that he would be doing a first and only vinyl pressing of the debut LP. With a crowdfunding goal of 300, Joiner nearly doubled the amount, reaching 523 backers via the vinyl pressing website Qrates. After the goal was reached in under a day, Joiner teased on both his Twitter and Instagram the first glimpse of new music in over 10 years.

The teased tracks, titled, “Dreamcasting,” “Bound 2 Be” and “Maybe Did,” feature the usual complex guitar playing and drumming that listeners have grown accustomed to. From a vocal perspective, Joiner appears to be taking things in a more bedroom pop/indie tuned direction, with less shouts and an overall more mature tone.

 With a relatively silent social media presence since December 2019, one can only speculate if and when Joiner’s new project will be released. December 19, 2020 marks the 11-year anniversary of the “Girlfriends” debut record, and hopefully by that time we’ll be hearing from Joiner once again.

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