Everything in Transit

Jack’s Mannequin is a band I had not listened to before, and I’m surprised they haven’t come across my feed. The band started as a solo project for Andrew McMahon, and its debut album, “Everything in Transit,” takes me back to a lot of the alternative rock albums that I loved in my high school and college days (1995 to 2003). I still hold a special place in my heart for the music of that era (this is true for most of us), and this is an album I totally missed. It’s so whiny, and I absolutely love it.

I would describe the sound as The All-American Rejects meet The Get Up Kids: alternative rock, but with obvious emo influences. McMahon plays piano or keyboard on every track, but the keys often take a back seat to the guitars. The sound reminds me of another piano pop band that doesn’t mind letting the guitar dominate: Seth Timbs’ band, Fluid Ounces. There are great vocal harmonies throughout the record. I’d bet LS sings those harmonies at the top of his lungs in the car by himself, and now I will, too.

The recording and release of “Everything in Transit” was tumultuous. McMahon had a case of laryngitis that he couldn’t shake, which tragically turned out to be leukemia. He had already written and recorded the whole album, and the call with the diagnosis came during a mastering session. He spent the next six months in treatment, was back on stage that December, and went on to make a full recovery.

It is trying to do this thing that I think the best of pop music does… if the lyric is really heavy, then the drums are faster… even though some of the songs themselves were really kind of heartbroken, there was still this element of hope in the song arrangements that meant you could dance while you felt that thing.

Jack’s Mannequin pulls off the emo/alt-rock anthem as well as anyone, hitting tropes like high rent in Los Angeles, manic pixie dream girls, and favorite sweaters. “Holiday from Real” sets the perfect mopey tone and was a great choice to lead off the album. “The Mixed Tape” is the album’s biggest song (“I’m writing you a symphony of sound” is a great line), and it really lets the frenetic piano come through in the mix.

The ballads, however, aren’t a high point for me. On “Rescued,” the writing feels a bit hollow and overdone. I can imagine the conversation when they were writing it: “Hey guys, it’s a ballad. What if we featured the piano in this one instead of loud guitars?” And then, “Hey, I’ve got an idea: what if strings came in for the second verse?” “Yeah, we’re brilliant!” (If you want to swim in piano-infused emotional ballads, check out “Boxing” or “Evaporated” from Ben Folds Five instead.)

By the way, that girl McMahon was so whiny about throughout the album? They are still married and have a daughter, Cecilia.

A few tracks that I found notable:

• “Holiday from Real”: The lead track and one of the singles. A great anthem to kick off the album.
• “Into the Airwaves”: “From an empty room on the first floor / As the cars pass by the liquor store / I deconstruct my thoughts at this piano.” Singing about writing the song that you’re singing: it doesn’t get much more emo than this.
• “MFEO”: I’m a sucker for a multi-part song. The layering of sounds in the intro to Part 1 screams the Beach Boys’ “Pet Sounds,” actively channeling Brian Wilson on “God Only Knows.”

If you love this album, I also recommend: The Get Up Kids’ landmark album, “Something to Write Home About”. Odds are you already love The Get Up Kids. If not, now you have homework.