Jon McLaughlin — Industry E.P. (Review)
The early 2000s saw a rise in piano rock/pop music on college and mainstream radio. Acts like Keane, The Fray, and Jamie Cullum were becoming more and more popular, having their songs used in television and played regularly on music television and radio. With the rise of this sound, Jon McLaughlin broke out onto the scene. Jon had self released two prior E.P.s of music, Up Until Now and Songs I Wrote and Later Recorded. By 2005, Jon had signed with a major label, Island Records, and released his first major label debut, Indiana. This album would prove to be a success for Jon. The record would reach number 25 on Billboard’s Top Rock Albums chart. Several of his songs were featured in mainstream television shows such as Scrubs, The Ghost Whisperer, and A Little Thing Called Life. Several months prior to the release of this record was the release of his Industry E.P. which featured several of the tracks that would go on to be featured in television shows and on radio. Let’s see what Industry has in store for us.
The E.P. is short, having only 4 songs. The opener is the jaunty “Industry”. This track immediately shows off Jon’s piano prowess. “Industry” ventures into Jon’s fears of what the future shows with his debut. This is a much more straight forward delivery of this sentiment, unlike Lisa Loeb’s “I Do” and Sara Barellies’s “Love Song” which both have a double meaning. “Beautiful Disaster” is the track I remember the most of this E.P.. It was on heavy rotation on VH1 and MTV. I remember the album having commercials on television and this song being the one they highlighted. The track focuses on a teenage girl who is struggling with her self confidence. It’s sound it perfectly in tune with some of the other acts of the time. Unlike some of the more generic sounding acts such as Train, Ryan Carberra, and The Fray, Jon’s sound and lyrical nature have much more maturity to it. “Praying to the Wrong God” is about the kind of girl that toys with you only to move on to next guy. She’s someone you know so little about, you’re unsure if her name is even the truth. This is the kind of song that I have grown past its senitment in my 30s. I can definitely see this resinating with the 13 to 25 crowd. It’s probably my least favorite on the E.P.. “Human” is about a relationship in the throws of conflict. The distancing and ups and downs don’t mean we’re not gonna make it through. We can’t blame ourselves or our significant other for this because we’re only human.
Jon McLaughlin has put out six albums albums since the release of this E.P., most recently releasing Angst & Grace off his own label. Jon is also a local Nashvillian now, commonly doing live shows and dueling piano gigs in the area. Jon also has a podcast with fellow musician Nashville singer/songwriter Dave Barnes. I recommend checking out Jon’s other projects or seeing him live, as he put on a fantastic show at the Canery Ballroom in support for 6th album Like Us. My highlights off this E.P.:
- “Beautiful Disaster”
- “Human”
Overall rating: 6 out of 10 beautiful disasters
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