Jobber
Jobber to the Stars
EXPLODING IN SOUND
You may have heard that the ’90s are back—or maybe you don’t buy that mass delusion, given that American military forces are stationed in our major cities, Roe is no longer the rule of the land, and the guy in the White House is inviting war criminals to faux summits on US soil. Whether Brooklyn newcomers Jobber are here to bring us back to a far more enjoyable era or simply just having fun, they sufficiently achieve the latter on their maiden full-length, Jobber to the Stars, brought to us by the ever-reliable Exploding in Sound Records.
This winner of a debut record’s equally clever and amusing angle is that its 11 numbers are catchy pop-rock tunes whose names refer to pro-wrestling culture, specifically the WWE brand. Jobber aren’t going for laughs by naming their sumptuous-sounding songs “Summerslam” (a single originally released back in 2023), “Clothesline From Hell,” and “Pillman’s Got a Gun” so much as they’re furthering the conceit they established with their band name (a “jobber” is a cipher wrestler scripted to lose to a better-known talent). And that’s the identity this quartet have established for themselves: They’re not just underdogs, they’re self-admitted losers. Which brings us back to the ’90s, when Nirvana, Beck, The Smashing Pumpkins, and other cool artists signed to Sub Pop and beyond gave kids who weren’t jocks or preppies something to live for: good music.
Jobber succeed in resurrecting this self-deprecating sensibility while carefully tiptoeing around the quicksand of self-loathing and self-destruction that is perhaps the greatest pandemic of all among Americans living in today’s world. From the fuzzy, unassuming allure of opening track “Raw Is War” to the Cars-esque, pop-tastic “Nightmare” to the introspective two-part title track, Jobber actually embody the antithesis of pro wrestling: They’re never in your face. Sure, they prove they can rock out on songs like “Million Dollar Man” and “HHH,” but by and large, they get their kicks by kicking back and playing crowd-pleasing music that warrants an equally succinct response: “good job.”
