The Jaded Rakes
"Three Songs"
Self-Released
myspace.com/thejadedrakes

Composed of ex-Stelle Group singer Chuck Mims with Alex Fulmer, Steven Bailey and Travis Woods; the Jaded Rakes release three songs:  “Ticket,” “Coming Up,” and “The Range” on their obviously and aptly titled CD EP "Three Songs."

Three tracks of poppy lo-fi catchy tunes, the Jaded Rakes from Columbia, S.C., hypnotize with their semi-acoustic James Taylor-esque sound.

Slow and melodic, the Jaded Rakes blend classic folk with an alternative adult contemporary feel. But don’t write them off so easily. The wailing guitar work on “Ticket” testifies to a background based in southern rock and perhaps a little Grateful Dead-style psychedelia. The last few bars introduce the listener to what the Jaded Rakes have in store for the last two tracks in terms of electronic pop.

Despite the obvious southern influence in their music, the Jaded Rakes are not some cheap imitation of Kris Kristofferson. Certain aspects delve into the contemplative singer-songwriter genre and perhaps into a bit of the lone country music storyteller, but "Three Songs" by   offers something more. The lyrics are modern, bare-bones and tell it like it is. The sound is soft, pop-coated lo-fi rock that ventures into territory that sometimes sounds more like Elvis Costello than Ben Folds Five, for example. 

What really sets apart this Southern four-piece from their contemporaries isn’t the fact that they can write a really catchy song and neither is it the ability of their songs to put into words what everyone feels at some time in their life. No, the Jaded Rakes display something wholly new and inventive in the fact that they can take all that makes their folky brand of music good and then update it with some electronic fuzz and pop. For this, the band falls somewhere between many different genres, creating something different for a new generation of pop-folk fans.