Girl at the Rock Shows

It has been years since I reviewed the self-titled EP from Joker’s Hand. Although it’s a release I have listened to many times since I reviewed it, I spent some time tonight going back and re-reading the review (you can re-read or read it for the first time HERE!). It sparked so much joy in me because I remember the excitement I felt as I listened to that album for the first time. Joker’s Hand is back with their new EP, ‘Pride Before The Panic,’ and just knowing I would be digging into this album brought me that same excitement. Was I going to get another mixed bag of perfection? Or was this going to show an evolution in the band? I didn’t care; I knew it would be good, and I hit play with a sense of uncontrolled anticipation.

“Consequence” is this album’s opening track, but it’s more of an intro than a whole track. It has a sense of commanding power in it, which is why I don’t entirely like calling this a prelude to the album, but, at the same time, I think that’s the best way to describe this opening song. I like how this one-minute and twenty-three-second song draws you into Joker’s Hand’s world without giving away anything about this EP. This opening has a sense of severity behind it that I never quite got from the first EP, but, again, it added to my uncontrolled anticipation of getting into the meat and potatoes of this six-song album.

You finally get a taste of the sheer power that is Joker’s Hand as the album shifts into “Highly Functioning Mind”. A perfect blend of alt-rock and hard-rock, I instantly felt a fire in my soul as this song played. Although powerful, this track never turns into something aggressive or overly in-your-face (until you get to the final line). This balance made me smile from ear to ear. It’s one of those things that so many bands try to produce, yet many fail, giving a song too much angst or too little, yet here was modest little Joker’s Hand killing it. It feels like the instrumentation is what provides this track with the more hard rock influence, whereas the vocals keep it more alt-rock, but there were also moments here where I couldn’t quite tell. Heck, it doesn’t matter. This is just a solidly fantastic track.

In true Joker’s Hand fashion, the entire game changes as the album moves onto “Break The Simulation.” Although there’s still that perfect balance of hard-rock and alt-rock in this one, there’s the addition of a perfect rap-metal influence and a bit more anger behind some of the words. I know not everyone is loving this nu-metal resurgence like I am, but this song was instantly a favorite of mine because of that influence and my current obsession with the genre. If it’s not your thing right now, this song isn’t all rap-metal. It’s almost as if you are watching the band dip their toes in the scene to see how it feels rather than diving in head first. There’s a lot of dynamics in this song that turn into an unexpected rollercoaster ride but that’s where I will stop. “Break The Simulation” is classic Joker’s Hand, and it just needs to be heard, not read about.

It’s kind of funny that “Peace Of Mind” is the exact same length as “Break The Simulation” at three minutes and twenty-four seconds, yet it is an entirely different song. This fourth track shows more of a swagger behind this band. The vocals demand your ears’ attention whether you want to allow it or not. The vocals go from a super smooth 90s alt-rock feeling to something much more threatening. Even with that threatening vibe, there’s something ridiculously catchy about this song that will surely have you hooked. Add some wailing guitars and you are left with a true masterpiece. You can still hear Joker’s Hand dabble in the rap-metal world of things, but it is undoubtedly a bit more subtle in this song.

“Apparition” is another rollercoaster ride of a track, but as this track played, I realized Joker’s Hand has found their niche. Again, I was struck by that balance of alt-rock and hard rock with a dash of rap-metal, and this was the third song where that was the vibe I got. “Apparition” is another insanely polished yet powerful track with a guitar part that instantly catches your ear (and your heart). The cool little cascading line of notes sounds pretty simple yet has such an impact on this song. It’s one of those little riffs that will stick with you long after you check out “Apparition.”

All things good must come to an end, and ‘Pride Before The Panic’ ends with the perfection that is “IDFWU.” Joker’s Hand hits you with a pop-punk opening out of nowhere before moving into a more straight-up punk vibe for this final track. Just when I thought I had this band pegged, they hit me with this, and as much as it frustrated me that I was, again, lost for the right words to describe this group’s sound, I adored this song so much. It’s powerful and anthemic, and it almost comes off as a protest track, in a way, with the shouted vocals and the constantly shifting dynamics. I know I said “Break The Simulation” was my favorite track on this album, but “IDFWU” is right next to that.

It has been so fun to check out this album, go back and listen to the self-titled, and then back to this one as I worked on this review. I got an absolute thrill from seeing this band’s growth and seeing how they’ve started to come into their own. I’m not sure what’s next for Joker’s Hand but I genuinely hope it’s more flawless releases like ‘Pride Before The Panic’.

My Favorite Track(s): “Break The Simulation”; “IDFWU”

What My Cats Did While I Listened To This: Artie screamed for dinner; no clue where the other three went but I have a feeling they are up to no good

Best Suited For Listening To While: Trying to amp up to tackle the rest of your to-do list

Closest Comparisons I Can Think Of: Any hard-rock band that has a bit of an alt influence to them and doesn’t fit into the “butt-rock” side of things

Overall Score: 8.5 out of 10

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