Seattle – Sensory perversion isn’t often given enough credit. When a sound truly assaults your ears, it tends to be viewed (or rather, heard) negatively; this kind of reaction might be automatic but it isn’t necessarily the one that should last. Art can be shocking, can be jarring, can be painful – what makes it quality art, however, is its ability to instill a reaction upon its audience. Jack Name’s debut release, Light Show, is shocking to the ears. It might instill a feeling of calm or beauty but it forces a reaction. For that, it is daring and brilliant.

Jack Name is the project of White Fence’s touring guitarist John Webster Johns and it sounds nothing like White Fence. The vocals are alarming and the guitar is simplistic. While perhaps not as accessible as White Fence, Jack Name is just as intricate and thoughtful (or thought-provoking). There’s a stark contrast between the nearly childlike vocal pangs and the consistent beat of the guitar. There’s almost an empty space between the two that leaves room for thought. Instead of feeling bleak or empty, the divergence of tones mysteriously creates a full overall sound.

While the percussion certainly plays its due role in this album, the rhythm seems to be carried more so by the guitar. The drums, instead, play the role of a decorative, but necessary, additive. This is truly the project of an individual rather than a whole band. This is particularly obvious on the album’s first single, “Pure Terror,” which is wildly spacy (as in outer space, but I guess also as in there’s a lot of intentional space in it). The song lyrically sets up the fanciful vibe of the album (“I was there with the gang the time the telephone rang to say a sleeper bit the leader with his medicine fangs”). From these lyrics we see Johns’ obvious personality and vision for this album. It’s an idea is so ingrained and exact in every part and second that it can only be the dedicated work of an individual mind.

After finishing last year on a European tour, Jack Name is heading out on a US tour. You can check out the tour dates here; fellow Seattleites should check out the show when he’s in town on Wednesday January 29^th at Chop Suey (playing with Dent). Before that, you can check out Light Show, which will be available on Drag City imprint God? Records.