Jonezetta

Emerging amid a wave of youthful acts reviving the synth-driven sounds of the early 1980s, Jonezetta delivers upbeat, straightforward pop rooted in the MTV era without any deeper mission than connecting those influences to listeners of similar age. The quartet originated in Clinton, MS, while its members were still attending high school. Robert Chisolm handles vocals and guitar, Kyle Howe plays lead guitar, Ty Garvey covers bass, and Mick Parsons sits behind the drums; the group assembled its nonsensical moniker by fusing two unrelated terms, following the model of acts such as Coldplay. The members treated Jonezetta as a side pursuit throughout their college years, performing only sporadically across the Southern college circuit, and by autumn 2004 they were close to dissolving the project entirely. A performance alongside As Cities Burn in Monroe, LA, introduced them to that band’s manager, Ryan Rado, whose enthusiasm for their set prompted the musicians to recommit themselves professionally. A recording made over the band’s 2005 spring break sparked limited competitive interest from labels, ultimately leading to a contract with the Washington-based indie imprint Tooth & Nail Records—home to Danielson Famile and Starflyer 59—and an EMI distribution arrangement. In summer 2005 former All-American Rejects keyboardist Tim Jordan became the official fifth member, yet he took his own life in December 2005 precisely when the group began tracking its first album under producer Steve Wilson, known for work with the Juliana Theory and others. The resulting LP, Popularity, appeared in October 2006, introduced by the single “Welcome Home.”