Jets to Brazil

Perfecting Loneliness, the third album from under-the-radar veterans Jets to Brazil, sees the band achieve the state of grace that contemporary indie rockers crave. Former Jawbreaker singer-guitarist Blake Schwarzenbach heads up these '90s pre-emo survivors, playing the role of the enlightened Gen Xer with a good bead on his relationship...

By D.X. Ferris

October 31, 2002

We’re $600 away from our summer campaign goal,
with just 1 day left!

We’re ready to deliver—but we need the resources to do it right. If Phoenix New Times matters to you, please take action and contribute today to help us expand our current events coverage when it’s needed most.

Contribute Now

Progress to goal

$10,000

$9,400

Audio By Carbonatix

[
          {
            "name": "GPT - Billboard - Slot Inline - Content - Labeled - No Desktop",
            "component": "21251496",
            "insertPoint": "2",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
          },{
            "name": "STN Player - Float - Mobile Only ",
            "component": "21327862",
            "insertPoint": "2",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
          },{
            "name": "Editor Picks",
            "component": "16759093",
            "insertPoint": "4",
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
          },{
            "name": "Inline Links",
            "component": "17980324",
            "insertPoint": "8th",
            "startingPoint": 8,
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
            "maxInsertions": 25
          },{
            "name": "GPT - 2x Rectangles Desktop, Tower on Mobile - Labeled",
            "component": "21934225",
            "insertPoint": "8th",
            "startingPoint": 8,
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
            "maxInsertions": 25          
          
          },{
            "name": "Inline Links",
            "component": "17980324",
            "insertPoint": "8th",
            "startingPoint": 12,
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
            "maxInsertions": 25
          },{
            "name": "GPT - Leaderboard to Tower - Slot Auto-select - Labeled",
            "component": "17012245",
            "insertPoint": "8th",
            "startingPoint": 12,
            "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
            "maxInsertions": 25
          }
        ]

Perfecting Loneliness, the third album from under-the-radar veterans Jets to Brazil, sees the band achieve the state of grace that contemporary indie rockers crave. Former Jawbreaker singer-guitarist Blake Schwarzenbach heads up these '90s pre-emo survivors, playing the role of the enlightened Gen Xer with a good bead on his relationship with his parents ("Wishlist"), but still not entirely sure how to make his girlfriend happy ("Lucky Charm").

The album uses Mellotron, lap steel and ambient grit, and the players shine in turn, working in Cracker/Wilco mode to deliver expansive back-porch tunes modeled on earthy landscapes and panoramic sunsets. The album's cornerstones are a series of sprawling, piano-driven ballads -- a song style Counting Crows once rode to great acclaim. Counting themselves among the failed and damaged, these onetime hipster luminaries can sing convincingly about people with minimum-wage jobs who can't, for a number of reasons, afford to call in sick ("The Frequency"). Yeah, Jets to Brazil are still grappling with issues that many of their peers had resolved by 1998 -- but that only means they have some of their raw vitality left.

D.X. Ferris

A message from Music Editor Amy Young: If you value independent journalism, please consider making a contribution to support our continued coverage of Phoenix's music, events and entertainment scenes.

Support Today