Ode to a Luna Moth's title track kicks off the EP with a guitar riff reminiscent of Dick Dale's "Miserlou." The down picked guitar riff creates tension that ebbs and flows as the track progresses. Vocalist and guitarist Devin Ware sings much of the verses through a clenched jaw but finally lets loose in the last half of the track.
Harper's Jar really focuses on the dynamics of this EP, but it isn't the typical loud quiet loud that many punk and alt-rock bands use. This band pushes themselves up to the line where things get blurry. It is like when you turn a stereo up to the point where music doesn't get any louder. Instead, the sound just gets more distorted. They start out on the edge and by the time Harper's Jar reaches the midpoint of a track, they have leaped over the edge. The band even does this on more pop-driven songs. "Cherry Hill" is the easily the catchiest track from Ode to a Luna Moth. The vocal and guitar melodies play like a track from Dinosaur Jr's debut record.
An issue that many trios have is the fact that they lack the extra people to fill in the sonic gaps. However, Ian Robert's bass lines cover a lot of the leftover sonic territory usually filled by a second guitarist. On "Ode to a Luna Moth" Robert functions almost like a rhythm guitarist by playing the main riff while Ware plays the chord changes. This doesn't mean Robert noodles around each track trying to fill up anything left by Ware. On "Cherry Hill" Robert plays an extremely conservative bass line underneath the solo as to not steal the spotlight.
Ode to a Luna Moth is a solid first EP from Harper's Jar. The fiery release burns quickly leaving me wanting more from these three Minneapolis punks.
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