Jessica Lea Mayfield took the stage last year with her Dan Auerbach-produced debut With Blasphemy So Heartfelt. However you slice it — and most who’ve heard it slice it effusively — it’s a bewitching song cycle that has yet to reach all the ears it should. JLM is something like the Beirut of bootgazer; a stunningly mature songwriter relaying, at 19, a musical world of fully realized emotional dips, troves, and nuance. The desolate country folk that underpins her laments crests on waves of reverb and hazed, ambient guitar, guided home by a distinct and warmly aching vocal. And it sounds like she’s had her heart stomped on enough for someone twice her age. Sad, but that’s where the magic happens. With Blasphemy is the sort of record where every song is a potential favorite, but on the back of that description you can look at the bleak yet tender “Kiss Me Again” as one of the set’s signature song. This is Jessica’s first video. Like the album, you won’t believe it. Cracker Farm produced. She’s battling emptiness, demons, and a life falling apart, and the glass-plate sketches are a perfect impressionistic fit. Stay for the ending.
Jessica spoke in class today. You should have this:
Her set at SXSW was great and looked like this.
With Blasphemy So Heartfelt is out on Polymer Sounds with distribution via Thirty Tigers. Hear more at MySpace.
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good video. really good song.
at first, i thought she was playing that guitar naked. i was quite disappointed to find she had on a black dress.
and the gun? really? what was a wonderful music video turned into a teen-age dramatic pile of shit.
I totally agree. I love her voice, the song… the video was great, but that ending just doesn’t fit.
I love the song am huge fan of this song and yet was sorely disappointed by the end of the video. The rest of the video is wonderful, love the drawings over her and love the fact that she looks so innocent and clean throughout the entire video but was the gun really necessary?
JLM is the most underrated singer/songwriter on the scene today. Her album is brilliant!!
Yes, what they said. The ending blows. I have a better version (re: no gun) I filmed of this song in YouTube land, but it’d likely get pulled if I tried to stick an addy up here. Go then … seek it out!
Amazing video! There is so much tension at the end, brilliant!
I agree with Richard; the tension @ the end is perfect! …and I’m not a teenager. The camera loves Jessica Lea and I think she has some great ideas. This song in particular draws you in right away, and to me, the video compliments it well – it didn’t feel boring, but intentional.
Yeah, yeah, so what? The gun wasn’t loaded. Besides, you cain’t always be in a good mood, especially when someone’s squigglin’ devil’s horns on your head in a video. How’d you feel? You ever think of that? I say, tell her it’s a good video, so she don’t go do sumptin’ stupid.
This is very nice Stereogum – Just wondering if you might also be able to evaluate or at least make people aware of the new Rentals mini albu which was released today. It is the best thing any member of Weezer, ex or otherwise have done since Pinkerton.
Cheers, I like this girl though, a little feral but nice.
The song is great but I don’t see why all you people are raving about the video. I actually thought it was pretty boring and the ending was just “Meh.”
her eyes
I personally didn’t like the video. But what do I know?
Sheesh everybody, ruin the ending why don’t ya? I would have liked to watch the video without knowing how it ends so I could have my own reaction.
This is a fantastic video. It is different, it fits the song, is visually appealing and makes you think. Why do you want this video to be the same as every other freakin’ video you’ve seen?
Nice job Jessica and to Cracker Farm.
-spanky
Whoever decided this video was a good idea should be shot. That gun is was the dumbest thing ive ever seen. I hope whatever is wrong surely do get resolved so some poor innocent songwriter dont want to kill herself. I thought this dumb shit ended with stained and the 4000000000 emo bands from the 90′s. booooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i think all of her songs are beautiful and embody SO much feeling. her lyrics and her voice are charged with emotion. i am not really big into music videos, but i was so captivated by her voice that i had to see what she looked like and how she moved. as for the gun, i mean, her music isn’t happy, so maybe she really felt that way in the song, and needed to put it into a visual so others knew what she was thinking and feeling. besides, a lot of others might really connect w/that image and not feel as “crazy” in the world. i think her expression is totally valid.