Now based in Las Vegas, avant garde pop electronic dance group Fans of Jimmy Century originated in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2007. Recently signed to Butown/Street Scholar/Bungalo/Universal Music Group Distribution their debut single “Va Va Voom to the Moon” was released on Sept 24th, 2013. A pop noir video for the song directed by Billy Clift (cousin of Hollywood icon Montgomery Clift) will be released in October 2013.
FOJC got off to a fast start with the success of their first 2007 single, “Hot Sahara,” which climbed the dance and radio charts, reaching #23 on FMQB. Both “Hot Sahara” and its accompanying album, “Twist of the Banshees,” were on the initial ballot in the Electronic Dance category for the Grammy Awards in the same year.
“Hot Sahara,” and additional tracks have been consistently selected for key placements in several popular television shows and major feature films alike. Fans of Jimmy Century’s exciting live performances have made them a favorite on the West Coast festival circuit, sharing the stage with artists like Lady GaGa, Robyn, Cyndi Lauper, and Shiny Toy Guns.
Fans of Jimmy Century are made up of, Alicia Perrone – Vocals, Melody, Lyrics, Victor James – Guitar, Keyboards, Programmer, Composer, Producer, Engineer, DJ Steve Walker – (Euro Trash Collective) – Drummer, DJ, Madelyn Feller – Back-up Vocals, Alex Leon, Jr. – Percussion, plus a group of dancers which include Tenile Pritchard, Brittany Nance, Aimee Dietrick, Amy Geldhof and Allie Lee.
In the FOJC videos, singer Alicia Perrone is evocative of the 50’s and 60’s Hollywood divas and it’s definitely a cleverer dynamic than most popular artists of our time. While jangly guitars, electronic synths, hip-hop beats and ‘60s, 70s and 80’s melodic stylings have all been done before, I’ve never heard them meshed together so perfectly, a true feat that is both exciting and revelatory.
FOJC’s music is interesting and layered and each layer is engaging; and that’s the difference between songs you listen to every now and again and songs you listen to all the way through twenty times a day, like “Va Va Voom to the Moon”.
What I want first and foremost from the music I listen to, is a great melody. And I have to say, Fans of Jimmy Century have that in spades. The melodies are just magnificently beautiful. I’ve heard plenty of gorgeous music in my lifetime because that’s what I gravitate to, and I know this is the goods right here. It’s pretty ingenious that FOJC’s songs are backed by hardcore beats, rocking rhythms and the kind of lush instrumentation you might expect from a cinematic score.
This is as evident on “Va Va Voom to the Moon” as it is on “Mr. Las Vegas”, “Hollywood Ending” or “Hot Sahara”, too name just a few. With its energetic rhythms and perfect quality, the FOJC songs are so well-crafted, you almost feel that you can eat them, proving that they have managed to successfully weave their artistic complexities into mesmerizing pieces of visual Pop that sparkle and crackle with freshness.
There is nothing silly or pretentious about the #VaVaVoom creators and I particularly love Alicia Perrone’s voice, one minute she comes off like a bubbly girl-next-door and the next, she sounds like a smoky seductress. Victor James impeccably designs the moods, sounds and arrangements around Ms Perrone’s talents, to fit her like a glove. The cherry on top is supplied by a band that delivers more than enough to keep the room swinging eternally, and the phenomenal production by Gary Miller, the founder of BuTown Entertainment, whose credits run from David Bowie and Simply Red to Andrea Bocelli, Lionel Ritchie and a host of others along the way.
There’s obviously a whole lot more to the Fans of Jimmy Century but “Va Va Voom to the Moon” is as good a place to start as any!
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3 Comments
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JD
Sweet review. They are very talented. Nothing quite like them out there, that I’ve heard.
Staff Wrote
Even though some people are saying that they are old, I really don’t mind. Va Va Voom led me to some of their other songs and they are good.
What gets me is that people forget what music is about. I could care less about looks. It’s the sound, the journey of the music.
That’s what different about these guys. They make music. They are artists.
Fan of Fans