Jandek plays a very strange and frequently atonal form of folk and blues music, often using an open and unconventional chord structure. Jandek's music is unique, but his lyrics closely mirror the country blues and folk traditions of Eastern Texas.
Barely a handful of people claim to have contacted Jandek, whose steadfastness in anonymity is legendary. Without any conventional attempts at promotion, he releases albums through his own record label Corwood Industries, which is addressed at a Houston post office box. Fans can write to Corwood for a typewritten catalogue and order Jandek’s albums, usually at inexpensive prices. Jandek’s work has been available on vinyl and on compact discs. Many of his albums feature pictures of the same young man (seen above) at various ages; in light of Jandek's live performances it is almost entirely certain that the person featured on the album covers is Jandek himself.
Jandek’s first album, Ready for the House (1978), was first accredited to a band called “The Units” but it was obviously a solo work. Jandek presumably plays acoustic guitar and has recorded much of his work apparently unaccompanied (assuming that the person singing is also the person playing guitar). However many other songs feature female vocals and/or different male vocalists. Others feature bass guitar, electric guitar and/or drums, presumably played by collaborators. No proper credits list has ever appeared on an album, but song titles have included "Nancy Sings" and "John Plays Drums".
Some of Jandek’s allure stems from his small but devoted fan base which has included Sonic Youth frontman Thurston Moore, Kurt Cobain, Indian Jewelry, and K Records founder Calvin Johnson.
The mystery of Jandek's identity was partially resolved in October 2004 when Jandek performed live in Scotland, at the Instal 04 music festival in Glasgow. This was Jandek's first known live appearance and performed with Richard Youngs (bass) and Alex Neilson (drums). The man on stage was obviously the same man who appears on the album covers. Corwood stipulated that the performance was not publicized in advance. Since then, "The Representative of Corwood Industries" (as Jandek sometimes insists on being called) has played a lot of concerts and recorded all of them for future releases. The last years have seen an even higher release frequency, even for Jandek.
For more information, you may go here:
www.tisue.net/jandek
www.jandekoncorwood.com
European Jewel
Jandek Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Just a shaking shake
Just a breaking break broke me today in the afternoon
No matter who you fool, it's a European jewel all in the sky
The lyrics of Jandek's song "European Jewel" are cryptic and open to interpretation, but one possible reading is that the singer is struggling with mental illness or an altered state of consciousness. The line "there's bugs in my brain" suggests a sense of infestation or invasion, and the lack of feeling "any pain" could be a symptom of dissociation or numbness. The repetition of "just a shaking shake" and "just a breaking break" could convey a sense of fragmentation or instability, as if the singer's mind and body are coming apart.
The line "broke me today in the afternoon" suggests a sudden and traumatic event that caused the singer's breakdown, but the cause is left vague. The final line, "no matter who you fool, it's a European jewel all in the sky," is more enigmatic. It could be read as a statement about the illusory nature of material success or social status, suggesting that even if one manages to deceive others, the truth is ultimately revealed in the vastness of the natural world. Alternatively, it could be a more optimistic statement about the beauty and mystery of the universe, implying that even in moments of trauma and confusion, there is something sublime to be found in the cosmos.
Line by Line Meaning
There's bugs in my brain, I can't feel any pain
I am experiencing an unusual, possibly alarming sensation in my head, and I am immune to the sensation of physical pain.
Just a shaking shake
The feeling in my head is causing me to shake or tremble involuntarily.
Just a breaking break broke me today in the afternoon
The sensation in my head became so intense that it overwhelmed me and caused me to break down emotionally.
No matter who you fool, it's a European jewel all in the sky
Regardless of any attempts to deceive or manipulate, the beauty of the European sky cannot be denied or obscured.
Contributed by Leah Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
struck down
incredible, half of bad moon rising musta been lifted off this track alone
Lylajean
YESS
Stephen W
fucking awesome jam
apeirogon
Amazing unhinged sqwarkery, this guy is genius
PowerPoint Master
This is terrifying
Mistah Edwardus
Sounds like a noisier, unrestrained Velvet Underground.
Sam Fartson
Jesus
Banddroid
Every song by this guy reminds me of playing in bands as a teenager. My friends trying to tune, and me smashing nonsensically on the drums to annoy them. This guy's music is meant to annoy, isn't it?
ꙮ
not really, his unique song structure or lack thereof is on purpose, its what he wants, he also tunes his guitar to make it sound like what he wants or to tunings he made up himself, the texts are nonsensical in a dadaist sense but meant to resemble folk and country, all in all i personally really appreciate how creative and divergent from conventional music it is while still being approachable and enjoyable
Shawarma Boy
Whack take