Dreamcake

Last updated
Dreamcake
Dreamcake.jpg
Studio album by
Jale
Released12 July 1994
Genre alternative rock
Label Sub Pop [1]
Producer Brad Wood [2]
Jale chronology
Dreamcake
(1994)		 So Wound
(1996)

Dreamcake is the first album by the Halifax, Nova Scotia, band Jale. [2] [3] [4] It was released in 1994 on Sub Pop Records. [5] [6]

Contents

The only Jale album with the singer-songwriter-drummer Alyson McLeod, the songs on Dreamcake are considered[ by whom? ] edgier and more emotional than those of Jale's later work.

The closing track, "Promise", written by Jennifer Pierce and Patrick Pentland of Sloan, and sung by Pierce, was released as a single.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [7]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [8]

The Chicago Reader wrote that the album "displays a precocious craft that lifts [Jale] well above one-trick-pony status." [9] Exclaim! called Dreamcake one of the ten best Canadian-made Sub Pop records, writing that "hypnotic Halifax pop swirls between the speakers on 'Again,' while 'Mend' threads together elements of jangling twee and paisley-print psychedelia." [10] The Chicago Tribune wrote that "with a bit less aggression than Hole and less cutesy-ness than Shonen Knife, [Jale] incorporate just enough guitar noise to counterbalance all those delightful pop hooks." [11]

Trouser Press wrote: "A diverse collection of contemporary electric indie-pop styles (some audibly influenced by Sloan) from a palette of appealing melodies, gentle harmony singing and buzzing guitar power, the casual-sounding record articulates the longings and frustrations of mindful young women who know when to draw the line and walk away from a bad scene." [12]

Track listing

All tracks by Jale

  1. "Not Happy" – 2:54
  2. "Nebulous" – 2:53
  3. "3 Days" – 3:26
  4. "To Be Your Friend" – 2:30
  5. "Again" – 3:21
  6. "River" – 3:28
  7. "I'm Sorry" – 2:15
  8. "Mend" – 2:10
  9. "The Unseen Guest" – 2:29
  10. "Love Letter" – 3:21
  11. "Emma" – 2:41
  12. "Promise (Jimmybeane Majestic Version)" – 4:34

Personnel

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References

  1. ↑ "Dreamcake". Sub Pop Records.
  2. 1 2 Barclay, Michael (2001). Have Not Been the Same: The Canrock Renaissance, 1985-1995. ECW Press. pp. 510–513.
  3. ↑ "Sub Pop 1995 Feature: Swingin' on the Flippity Flop with Sub Pop". Spin. April 2, 2018.
  4. ↑ Johns, Stephanie. "Listen to this: Jale, "Again" (Komoda mix)". The Coast Halifax.
  5. ↑ "HALIFAX GRUNGE | Maclean's | NOVEMBER 28, 1994". Maclean's | The Complete Archive.
  6. ↑ Gubbins, Teresa, Dallas Morning. "BANDS TAKE A SINGULAR ATTITUDE". OrlandoSentinel.com.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  7. ↑ Boldman, Gina. "Review: Dreamcake". AllMusic . Retrieved 19 August 2009.
  8. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 4. MUZE. p. 559.
  9. ↑ Reger, Rick. "Jale". Chicago Reader.
  10. ↑ "Sub Pop's Top 10 Canadian-made Albums". exclaim.ca.
  11. ↑ Kening, Dan. "Other concerts of note: Jale, Tuesday at Lounge Ax". chicagotribune.com.
  12. ↑ "Jale". Trouser Press. Retrieved 26 July 2020.
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