If Dr. John grew up a punk rocker in the Midwest rather than in the jazz and funk clubs of voodoo-soaked New Orleans, chances are he’d sound a lot like Jake La Botz.
On They’re Coming For Me, the Nashville, by way of Chicago, musician turns in a wildly eclectic, deeply satisfying gumbo of blues, funk, jazz and even snatches of rock. And despite being decades younger than the brilliant, dearly missed Night Tripper, you can hear traces of his influence in both Botz’s music as well as his fantastical characters. It’s the music that first draws you in, from haunting guitars, organs and pianos. But’s it’s the characters in the songs that keep you coming back for more, whether it’s stories about Sasquatch, (“Hey Bigfoot”) or a song about a guy trying to fix everything around him with glue… or likely about something so much more (“Johnnybag the Superglue”). It’s Botz’s knack for a witty turn of phrase that makes this set so compelling. Elsewhere songs like “Grace Of The Leaves” and “Without The Weight,” two of the most stripped down tracks from this collection, manage to be just as captivating.
With They’re Coming For Me, Botz’s sophomore effort, he has manages to up the stakes considerably thanks to such a strong effort, likely earning him a slew of new followers and setting a pretty high bar for his next act.
Jake La Botz – They’re Coming For Me/12 tracks/Hi-Style Records/2019