Living in a state like Maryland, it sometimes feels as though I’m spoiled when it comes to music. In addition to big festivals like Maryland Deathfest and Maryland Doom Fest, there’s a ton of talent from across the state that don’t always gain the notoriety in other parts of the country. One name that’s been around for a bit is Faith in Jane, who fall somewhere between jam band, heavy psych, doom, and straight up 90s grunge and alternative rock. Formed back in 2008, the group has gained traction locally through opening for bigger name bands (I saw them open for Conan years back) and doing a collaborative set with Wino at Shadow Woods Metal Festival. What I wasn’t aware of is their substantial catalog of recordings from this almost decade and a half existence, as this year’s Axe to Oak brings the count up to eight. But where many bands seem to be stalling out at the eight to ten album mark, Faith in Jane seems to just be getting going with a focused and extremely catchy effort.
What immediately stands out about Axe to Oak is the warmness and density of the recording. Faith in Jane has had a sound in the past that had the crunchiness of doom and heavy psych with some of the lighter textures of other rock variants, but here each element of the trio has been enhanced. The bass rumbles with greater heaviness than before, the drums have weight behind them while also feeling like they could be right in front of you, and the guitars are able to offer up a grittier and equally warm tone over top of this. It’s hard to pin down exactly what to call what Faith in Jane is doing here, but it’s capable of drawing in diehard doom fans and those that miss the 90s radio rock days in equal capacity. Nine-minute opener “Whiskey Mountain Breakdown” showcases all these facets of the band in one song, touching upon some heavier Black Sabbath grooves, desert rock tones, and equal amounts of grunge and southern rock swagger with some jam band-esque solos tying everything together. Aside from the equally lengthy “Enter Her Light” the rest of Axe to Oak is a bit more reigned in, emphasizing specific grooves or warmer melodies before moving onto the next idea. But these longer tracks don’t overstay their welcome or feel like they’re just aimlessly filling time, as they expand outwards naturally and showcase the group’s ability to weave together riff after riff. Sometimes on albums like these I find one or two songs that get stuck in my head and struggle to remember the rest, but here I remember later moments like the title track just as much as the earlier sections. “The Seeker” does feel like its cut’s things a bit short and its ending is a bit abrupt, but this is a small flaw in otherwise focused and well-written album.
The grittier singing of Dan Mize is where a lot of the grunge influence comes through, as there are quite a few moments on Axe to Oak where he sounds extremely close to Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam. This is most apparent on the band’s take on Irish folk song “She Moved Through the Fair” but there are several other sections where Mize sounds dead on. Depending on how you feel about Pearl Jam might determine your mileage with Faith in Jane, but as someone that grew up on local radio rock in the 90s that adds to the appeal for me and Mize also delivers some grittier pitches that have more in common with doom and heavy rock at other points as well. There’s a lot of emotion to his performance and the way that his singing seems to soar over the recording works to the band’s advantage, giving equal focus to the grooves, solos, and soulful singing. This is another area where Faith in Jane has that crossover appeal, as they’re not quite doom or alternative rock, but Mize’s approach could easily appeal to both sides of the spectrum.
Faith in Jane occupy this interesting space where they’re sort of doom and sort of rock, but care the most about the power of a good riff and powerful groove. On album number eight it feels like this has been perfectly captured, showcasing their jam band nature without letting things get too out of control while also offering some of their strongest hooks to date. The warm and inviting tonality is sure to draw quite a few listeners in, and while I would’ve liked a slightly stronger ending to “The Seeker”, if that’s the only main flaw I can throw at this one it’s clear that this is a highlight of this second half of 2022. It’s time for this trio to get additional recognition beyond their home state and this seems like the album that could do it. Axe to Oak is available from Grimoire Records.
-Review by Chris Dahlberg