V/A – Until The Shaking Stops: A Salute to Jawbox / 2005 Two Sheds / 14 Tracks / http://www.twoshedsmusic.com / Reviewed 16 June 2005

To be honest, Jawbox was a band that ended about a year before I actually started getting into music, so I was not as familiar with them as I was with bands that have stuck to their guns from the Washington scene (Fugazi, for example). Little did I know that Jawbox had a pretty impressive history, especially the fact that they were the first act to leave Dischord record, signing with Atlantic. The ability to break away from decidedly a major power in the indie world even in 1989 shows an intrepid band, and the bands that are present on this compilation (including members from Retisonic, Asian Man records, Red Animal War) and more.

What is shocking during the entirety of this compilation is the commonality of the sound between the bands; it is as if the Jawbox legacy still has that sort of power nearly a decade after the band broke up. The first true hit on the disc comes during Black Cross’ version of “Tools and Chrome”, a track that has incredibly high energy and intense instrumentation that really make the track memorable. When the track moves beyond the power-pop that is such a hallmark ( I can only assume from the sound on this album) of Jawbox, especially during Actionslacks’ “Iodine”.

The inclusion of a piano to the guitar lines floating through the track makes for a truly rich sound that will reveal a different side to the band each time someone listens to the track. “The Actual” come through with another sedately-opening track, this time in “Static”, but decide to change up the general style by including an immediately memorable bass line and coupling that with a Perry Farrell-esque set of vocals. Brining a major Weezer-like sound to their reinterpretation of “Spit-Bite”, Asian Man’s own Colossal still make a memorable and catchy track that uses nuanced guitar lines to make its point noticed. Each track on “Until The Shaking Stops” is solid and really paints a flattering picture of Jawbox for those individuals that were born a mite too late for the impact of the band. Pick up this album for the current bands, and if the style in which they cut these tracks seems amenable, pick up an album or two of Jawbox’s. Make sure to buy this directly from the record label as well - $2 of each CD bought goes to a foundation trying to eradicate lupus.

Top Tracks: Black Cross/Tools and Chrome, The Actual/Static

Rating: 6.5/10