Northern California’s favorite alt-rock/pop punk trio StrateJacket are thrilled to share their spirited debut EP, StrateJacket, out today via EDGEOUT. The band’s self-titled EP comes on the heels of the band signing on withWasserman Music booking agents Andrew Buck and Ben Martines and ahead of the band’s first festival appearance at Welcome To Rockvillein Daytona Beach thisSunday, May 12thand their set atPunk Rock Bowling in Las Vegas, NV on May 23rd.
Made up of Jackson Roemers (lead vocals/guitar, 24), Fabian Angel (vocals/bass, 23) and Nate Mangold (drums, 22), their StrateJacket EP features singles like the shout-at-the-heavens anthem “Bad Start” (originally featured on EA Sports’ NHL24 Soundtrack in tandem with NHL24’s Playlist last year) and the ultra-melodic current single “Be My Drug” which include skyscraper-high hooks, both of which overflow with dark humor and contain the sort of electric energy that has hyper-charged the Bay Area’s punk and alternative scenes for decades. Mangold also wrote some personal lyrics for the album on the tumultuous “Living A Lie” and the slashing “Cut the Cord,” which he jokingly calls “a high school heartbroken love story” but admits it’s based on actual experiences. The EP caps off with “Torch,” which Roemers describes as “the black sheep of the EP” since it’s the most straightforward and mid tempo rock song. “It doesn’t always have to be 1,000-mile-per-hour songs,” Angel adds.
“I hope we’re seen as a response to the overproduced music that’s coming out lately,” Roemers says. “We want to sound raw and stripped-down.” But even with sparse arrangements, the group finds catchy new textures within pop punk. Part of the band’s secret is their diverse influences. Each of StrateJacket’s musicians has unique tastes that he’s sharing been with the others. Roemers is a Beatles obsessive, hence the big vocal hooks, and he also loves Led Zeppelin, The Fratellis, and, he says, “obviously” Green Day. Angel loves Elton John and alternative rock — especially Arctic Monkeys and the Black Keys — but he has also started banging his head since Mangold, whose tastes span folk to dubstep, has been playing him metal songs.
StrateJacket recorded a bulk of new music at Vancouver’s Armoury Studios in November of 2022 with the Juno/BMI-winning Canadian producer/songwriter Brian Howes (Hinder, Skillet, Boys Like Girls). They also secured the Grammy® winning Chris Lord-Alge (Green Day, Muse, Prince) to mix the tunes.
StrateJacket’s self-titled EP is out today via EDGEOUT/UMG/UMe.