Portland – The Goodfoot experienced the infectiousness of Jakubi on Thursday night. The venue was one of the first stops on their second U.S. tour and follows the release of their single “Couch Potato.” The Melbourne-based five-piece already have a substantial following both in the U.S. and Australia. Their music is a twist on the traditional and experimental—an ode to reggae and funk one minute, and a play on hip-hop and electronic the next. To put it simply, Jakubi’s sound is both catchy and contemporary. Not only are they skilled, exciting musicians, but it is easy to see that their fan-base follows them for much more than their ability–because Jakubi sincerely loves them.
Jakubi has a sense of community about them, perhaps because the band is comprised of brothers Jerome and Jacob Farah, cousins Robert Amoruso and Jesse Rehaut, and mutual friend Adam Kane. The band formed in early 2012 and have skyrocketed in popularity ever since. The band funded their first EP, Holiday, through a Kickstarter campaign and released it earlier this year. Technically, the band uses guitar, bass, drums, talk box and synth to create their undeniably laid-back sound, and their impressive 19-song set used every element to grasp the audience, most of whom continued to encourage encores by the end of it. Jakubi were all too happy to indulge them.
From the moment Jakubi stepped on stage, it was clear they were a band with purpose and talent to match. Jerome Farah’s vocals sailed over the venue. His spur of the moment rhymes were welcome interludes to the next track, and the faint trace of a lisp made it all the more endearing. Farah’s use of a talk box updated their sound while Rehaut’s drumming provided the foundation for it. Undoubtedly, Jakubi’s presence on stage is a reason that the band is able to stir audiences. Before the second song began, Farah exclaimed, “you’re allowed to dance!” From then on, the crowd didn’t stop dancing.
The band doesn’t just thrive on their positive sound; they have soul. During the set, Farah would introduce a song with the explanation: “if you can listen to the lyrics, it does mean a lot to us.” Though songs like “Couch Potato” and “Can’t Afford It All” welcome listeners to relate and revel in that relation, “Mr. Popular” and “Feels Like Yesterday” take those very ideas to a deeper level.
There was no shortage of surprises when it came to Jakubi’s wildly entertaining show; they remixed “Couch Potato,” ambitiously covered Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition” and sculpted impromptu songs between tracks. Most of the audience had never seen Jakubi live, but had taken the chance after watching YouTube videos or listening to their Soundcloud. Jakubi has sailed in popularity because of their web presence in many ways. They have millions of views on YouTube, millions of plays on Soundcloud, just one EP, and 20,000 followers on Facebook. It is no surprise that Jakubi is going somewhere, and wherever it is, they’re going there fast.
Track Jakubi’s tour dates here and like the band on Facebook for updates on album releases.
Photos of Jacubi live by Dakota Smith
Dakota Smith
Follow her on twitter in case she says something funny: @LikeTheStates
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