Gustaffson – The Jacaranda – Review & Andrew Gower Interview

Outlander star Andrew Gower has released a remarkable new E.P. The Jacaranda under band name Gustaffson, produced by Elbow keyboardist Craig Potter. The accompanying video features iconic actress Sue Johnston in a beautifully crafted play on mundane-meets-fantasy. Nigel reviews the E.P. and speaks with Andrew about his new outfit, his musical background and how he juggles acting and band duties, in a revealing interview for Louder Than War (below).

The Jacaranda is a collection of songs Andrew started writing when he was just 17 years old. At the core is the title track which opens with a sleazy piano bar section, before kicking in to a cool funk groove. At the heart is a slick playoff between guitar and bass which propels the track forward before breaking into Andrew’s silky smooth chorus. It’s undefinable in a way – there isn’t a track like it, it kind of carves out it’s own genre of sophisticated bass driven pop. Elements of Sheeran, but harking back maybe to late ’80 Blow Monkeys. Hard to compare, but make your own minds up! The theme, as Andrew explains in the interview, is the legendary club and the surrounding streets, which he and his mates hung around as kids. I say legendary because The Beatles played The Jacaranda in 1961, and there is still evidence of the old brickwork in the downstairs venue.

The band featured long term musical partner James Webster (Webbo) who was in Andrew’s previous band Emerson. Also on the record are Graham Bennett (drums), David Gleave (bass) and Craig Potter on Piano.

The accompanying tracks, Night People, Go Easy and the incredible Kingdom are lush ballads that swing along – each one a story with intricate lyrics and melodies. You can definitely hear the Elbow influence here through the production, which I guess is inevitable given Craig’s involvement, but that’s no bad thing. The band spent considerable time at Blueprint studios perfecting these tracks and it shows in the highly polished result. The band also have the thumbs up from Guy Garvey who played the whole E.P. on his 6Music radio show.

With the quality of the songwriting and the the Elbow connection I can only see great things happening for Andrew and the band. His only challenge is going to be fitting his two careers alongside each other. A nice problem to have!

There is talk of a full album and tour for Gustaffson – watch the video below for more! Andrew very kindly spoke with me from Colombia, where he was attending a friends wedding.

The E.P. is out now on all major streaming platforms.

Gustaffson are on Facebook & Twitter

This is Andrew Gower’s Facebook and this is his website: http://www.andrew-gower.co.uk/

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Words by Nigel Carr. More writing by Nigel on Louder Than War can be found in his Author’s archive. You can find Nigel on Twitter and Facebook Listen to Nigel’s show on Louder Than War Radio – Wednesdays 9-11 pm! here and on the free Apps:  https://s2.radio.co/sab795a38d/listen

Source: louderthanwar.com