Album Review: PJ Bond with Communipaw – “Where Were You?”

PJ Bond with Communipaw
Where Were You?
(Black Numbers)

With only his second full length release, New Jersey’s PJ Bond has put out the kind of record seasoned veterans have been trying their entire careers to make. Over nearly a dozen tracks, Bond shows a huge step forward lyrically and vocally from 2009’s You Didn’t Know I Was Alphabetical.

While he had a handful of EPs and splits in the years between the two LPs, this latest showcases his talent for wry, smart lyrics and an easy delivery like never before. Songs like the bittersweet opener “Everglades” and the more upbeat “87 Broadcast,” shows audio hints of everyone from late ’70/early ’80s Tom Petty to (and yes, I am self-aware enough to realize it’s a cliché to reference this guy when writing about any singer/songwriter from Jersey, but…) Springsteen to more modern folk punks like Frank Turner and Chuck Ragan.

Musically, teaming with Communipaw – comprised of PJ’s brother Brian, Keith Carne and Justin Gaynor – was a brilliant move, expanding the sound to pedal steel, piano and 12 string on various tracks, for a much fuller album. A brilliant, satisfying record from start to finish. (John B. Moore)

Purchase Where Were You? on iTunes here.