Jawbox Surprise Releases First New Recordings Since 1996

Beloved and influential Washington, D.C.-reared rock quartet Jawbox stunned fans today (July 8) by surprise-releasing its first new recordings since its final self-titled album in 1996. The Revisionist EP includes new renditions of “Grip” and “Consolation Prize” from Jawbox’s 1991 debut album Grippe as well as a cover of Wire’s “Lowdown.”

After splitting in 1997, Jawbox reunited for a one-off December 2009 performance on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon but didn’t perform in public again until a 2019 tour. Taped during rehearsals earlier this year, the new recordings are Jawbox’s first with guitarist Brooks Harlan, who stepped in for original member Bill Barbot last year.

Frontman J. Robbins says the band felt the two Grippe tracks and the Wire cover “were worth recording” out of the multitude of other songs that were rehearsed. Indeed, the new versions of “Grip” and “Consolation Prize” are more measured and powerful than their original incarnations, which featured drummer Adam Wade and not latter-day Jawbox skinsman Zach Barocas.

The Wire cover has been played a handful of times on Jawbox’s 2022 tour dates, which continue this month with three special, career-spanning shows at Le Poisson Rouge in New York. The July 20 show will focus on the band’s early output for Dischord Records, while the next night will cover Jawbox’s 1994 major-label debut, For Your Own Special Sweetheart. The final show on July 22 will feature material from Jawbox, the group’s last album before disbanding.

Jawbox has a separate hometown show at the Black Cat on July 23 and will also play at Riot Fest in Chicago on Sept. 18.