"I've Got a Temper; She's Got a Gun"

Miami quintet the JeanMarie played a midnight show last night at The Vagabond. I need a smack in the head for missing it because I think this band and I are soul mates. Here’s the line from their bio that convinced me: “Hailing from Miami, a city whose whole appeal is wealth and exclusiveness, the band may seem like a crew of outsiders with their grassroots desire for nothing more than a good time, and maybe a beer.”

The JeanMarie adopted the unMiami-like polar bear as a mascot and take pride in their role as outsiders inside the Miami music scene, playing a mix of pop, rock, indie, groove, and dance. “Bouncy but hardly light, dignified with a Brit-like swagger but truly, effortlessly soulful," wrote the Broward/Palm Beach New Times, "the JeanMarie makes funk-fueled dance rock that's both passionate and unabashedly silly."

The members of the JeanMarie met at the University of Miami, where they were music majors. They got a huge break last year when another local band pulled out of an opening slot for Bloc Party. Three hours before the show, the JeanMarie’s booking agent called and told them they were up. “It’s like one of those bad dreams you have, when you show up in, like, your seventh grade class not wearing pants and you forgot your homework,” said keyboardist Richard Laudenraudy.

The JeanMarie released their first E.P., What's a Revolution Without Backup Dancers?, in 2006. The follow up E.P., 2007’s Self-Titled, featured the band in its current configuration with all members helping to write, record, edit, and produce the album in a squalid corner of Miami's Little Haiti district. They are currently in the studio finishing the as-of-yet unnamed album that will act as their full-length debut.

Today’s music is a sampling from each of the two E.P.s, and a track from the upcoming album.

Bombs.mp3
Miss St. Claire.mp3
You Again Alone.mp3

For more information about the band and upcoming shows (don’t miss out like I did) check out the JeanMarie’s MySpace or Web site.
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Top photo by Amy Cohen

Labels: indie, local stuff

posted by aikin @ 4:55 PM