Christmas Dissonance

Jael is a “concept album release” kind of artist. He is a parable singer that reveals a story chapter by chapter, song by song, until the album exposes the whole story.

Singles work for artists who think in terms of hit songs and brief attention spans. Single-release artists look for Spotify or radio exposure and are often one-hit wonders, even though many release albums. If their sound is good enough and consistent over their albums, people buy the records until they get tired of the particular sound. The best of these artists only last for a few records. Then people realize their limitations and move on.

Concept albums are not an option for Jael. They are the essential frame for the art. To make a concept album work, it can’t be boring or predictable. Not every song follows the hit formula. Each one is a part of the story that may not reveal the ending and may leave you hanging. The songs need context to work individually. To pick a single from such a work does not help you understand whether you will like the album or the artist. You need the whole story.

Concept album artists, who push themselves, never measure up to expectations. They exceed them. They attempt to go beyond what fans want to hear and give them something they need. They stretch the audience and hope the fans will appreciate the journey. Each time a true artist releases something new, they lose some fans of their previous work and hopefully gain new ones. Eventually, they have the best shot at enduring. Catchy fluff is fleeting but art with depth can last.

So this is why Jael is wrestling with marketing the new album. “Outside Looking Inn” is not your normal Christmas record and is actually a story within a story. It is Volume 2 of the 4-part “Great Reset Chronicles.” For those who missed Volume 1, it was called “Feeling Used Yet?” and can be accessed at https://jltmediawerks.bandcamp.com

This album recognizes that not everyone likes Christmas. There is something about praising an ideal when reality does not match up, that increases the pain one is experiencing. When tyranny adds to the problem, the pain gets worse. The problem is compounded but would exist anyway, as people associate bad stuff that happens with the holiday. Sometimes the association is more than coincidental.

This album is hard to listen to at times, but it shows people in pain that they are noticed and understood. It is not all doom and gloom. It reveals that Mary’s first Christmas was full of personal condemnation from friends and relatives. Bethlehem was a scene of rejection, the tyranny of the day was brutal. Not simply the Roman occupation but understand that Herod also tried to kill Jesus before he was 2 years old. It also recognizes that Christ managed to change the world despite all this and that there is a future that will be made right. It shows you all is not lost. God is still on the throne.

The record will live on past the season in the same way that real circumstances live on when the festivities are over. We live in time for now but have a future for eternity. Time now is valuable and a gift, but something more is coming.

This entire project has faced incredible opposition both spiritually and politically. There are forces that really don’t want any of it heard. Details have been, and will continue to be, the subject of other posts but the point of this post is to tell you that we need you on the team. Whatever song you come across first on the record, don’t let it influence your opinion of the whole thing until you’ve heard the whole thing. If promoting a single won’t work for this record, there are 4 simple things you can do that will.

1. The first and most important, is to pray for Jael and the band. Pray that they would be obedient to the guidance of the Holy Spirit and that what God wants from this is accomplished.

2. Secondly, take a moment to pass on the music and the message to at least 3 people. That way the reach of the music will expand virally even if some are not interested.

3. Thirdly, donate. The music is made available for free even while products that have unit costs are sold. The costs of recording and promotion are covered by donations from people who believe in the value of what we do. There will be additional ways to give that become available but for now, you can do it at https://www.givesendgo.com/jaelband

4. Finally, drop a note of encouragement to Jael on Facebook or email him at jaelmusic@gmail.com. Ask to be notified of developments.

The tracklist is as follows:
1. Good King Worcester Sauce – Dark humor to set the stage. Tyranny makes everything harder.
2. Christmas Dissonance – A “King Crimson-like” beginning to the story.
3. Season’s Feelings – A reality for too many kids.
4. More of What You Want – Blues about the role of alcohol. Seasonally appropriate but not specifically a Christmas song.
5. No Christmas Gift – Losing at love is hard at any time of year but especially at a time when family and friends are so important.
6. Face to Face. - Death happens. Jael lost both of his parents during different Christmas seasons.
7. Forgetful Christmas Carol – Biting satire both musically and lyrically. Some things need to be remembered.
8. Madonna – Beginning to understand the challenges of the first Christmas.
9. Moonlight and Starlight – Rejection in Bethlehem
10. Mary’s Gonna Have A Baby Boy – The bright spot and a prophetic warning to despots.
11. Gifts – Faith for what is to come.
12. Expectantly – Looking to the future with hope.
13. On the Last Night of the Year – Focusing again on the present.

This is the third year this project has been under construction with the intention to release it on Black Friday. We missed the deadlines again. The reach of this project, since normal processes cannot be used for promotion, is really in the hands of God. Please play a part in his purposes as he moves you to be involved.

When the primary website becomes active again, it will be at http://www.jltmediawerks.com. Make sure you check out the other 3 previews available now on this site.