Mega Jawn is Here to Wrap up the year!

Next year has all of our hopes up for one reason or another. Either we're hopeful live shows will come back or for new releases coming up on the radar. Luckily for us, Philadelphia's A Day Without Love, solo project from Brian Walker, is dropping an album and a documentary in 2021. In the meantime if you're not familiar with his work, Mega Jawn is here! A 55-minute long compilation of singles he's made with various artists from the scenes he's a part of. There's something for everyone in his discography. From Bedroom Pop to Folk Punk. Outside of his EPs he released in 2020, you see his range in these singles.

Features on this compilation include Alexandra Kay March, Samryebread, Bartees Cox (aka Bartees Strange), Marcelyn, Andrew Ryan, Branden Bauer, Jake Detwiler, Internal Rhyme, Maria Mirenzi of Brother Martin, Best Hit TV, Juliet Eve, Esther, Erin Fox, and Plead the Filth. These artists may or may not sound familiar. Walker is associated with various scenes, including artists outside of Philadelphia and of various genres. This compilation focuses on his songwriting ability and the multiple scenes along he's connected to afterall. Each single brings something new to the table. From personal and/or political songs to songs about vibing, Walker's musical skills shine. His ability to jump from various sounds while having components that make a song his is amazing. Seeing how this aspect plays into the collaborations between so many different people is interesting to hear out. Hearing this collection is like asking the question, what can A Day Without Love song be?

Even though this is a collection of various releases, the arrangement of this is flawless. It's easy to listen to this in order without shuffle and each song goes into the next quite well. Even if the previous song was different lyrically it all fits together. It's a perfect curation for people who want to get into A Day Without Love but don't know where to start. Personally I got into this project with "Defend Seltzer" by Apes of the State (feat. Local News Legend and A Day Without Love) and his songs with Andrew Ryan that are on this compilation. Starting with this compilation will show more range rather than just a few songs. If you choose a set of A Day Without Love songs that are similar in genre, you're going to get whiplash. I remember hearing Comfort in the Bedroom surprised that he wrote songs I've heard from him in the past. Speaking of how I found him through a feature on an Apes of the State song, this is also the perfect compilation to find other artists. That's a cool thing that comes with any collaboration.

Overall I'd say this compilation is a 9.5/10 if you can rate a compilation. This is the only singles compilation that I felt flowed like an album. When I say it's well curated, I mean it's well curated. Especially since each featuring artist brings something new to their part in the compilation. A Day Without Love has covered a lot of ground since 2013. Mega Jawn shows a good range of what his skills are, scenes he has worked with, and how he brings serious and not so serious topics to light. He's definitely an artist that should be on your radar.

Favorite songs:

"CTRL+ALT+DEL" featuring Esther - One of my favorites since the week it came out. It's one of the catchy Bedroom Pop songs on the compilation.

"Fashit" featuring Bartees Strange - Both Walker and Cox have unique styles, this makes a very interesting song on the instrumental level. Lyrically it is also an important song with messages of anti-racism and class issues.

"B.O.Y.S. (Bugs On Your Shoulder)" featuring Branden Bauer - This song I'd highly suggest if you're a Jake Tittle fan. It's a fun Indie Rock song that I'd love to hear at a music festival one day.

"Daylight" featuring Marcelyn - A softer song on the compilation that anyone dealing with seasonal depression will understand all too well.

"Rain" featuring Plead the Filth - It's an overall positive song and the unclean vocal breakdown is the icing on the cake for this one.

Listen to Mega Jawn here

Spotify

Bandcamp:

https://adaywithoutlove.bandcamp.com/album/mega-jawn

Soundcloud*

Apple Music*

*Will be updated soon.

On this blog I'll post longer or more polished pieces on here. If you want to see more mini reviews my username is thy_koosk on Musicboard!