Who is Jimmy? Why does he need funds? Here in my home turf of Boston, the Jimmy Fund raises money for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. But the band Funds For Jimmy is based all the way out in the LA suburbs. So who is the namesake for the band? Until we know, I’ll say this: With the way the band rocks, both they and Jimmy deserve all the funds they can get.
Funds For Jimmy’s new EP tell someone you love them has been a long time coming: Their last release was two years ago in the form of the two-track single tell me how you want 2 die, and their last full-length was 2023’s Bankrupt. It drops as a love letter to the LA and greater SoCal DIY community that helped shape the band. On the EP’s four tracks, the band delivers just as much energy as they do in their live shows, which have become known around their local scene for their emotionally charged performances.
That passion comes through from the first moment of “Sugarcoat”, the EP’s lead track, which puts you right in the middle of one of Funds For Jimmy’s shows. The performance is a little fast and loose, but its energy draws you in like the best of indie punk bands. It doesn’t have to be perfect; it just has to captivate you and make you want to mosh with everyone else on the dance floor. It seeks to make you feel something.
It’s why Funds For Jimmy call their music “watercolor emo”. In a watercolor painting, you can see where the colors bleed, the jagged and wavy edges where the brush stopped, every wet fleck and drop that flung from the bristles. It feels organic and vibrant, just like Funds For Jimmy’s music. One might even use words like “raw” or “elemental”.
And what’s more raw than the feeling of wanting to die? Hence the EP’s second track, “d*e”, in which Molly Grace’s vocals push that deep desperation through the heavy and harsh guitars. On this song, the painting gets about as black as it can get, but even still, you can hear all the other colors the brush has tasted. It’s a reminder that even in our darkest moments, there’s still light to let brilliant things shine.
More vulnerable moments come on “Rogue”, which features some fantastic screamo vocals and grungy almost-djent like beats, and “Resolve”, the final track, which features an intense math-rock-esque first half before ending the EP with a chill, almost jazzy jam. Those final few minutes of the album showcase the band’s range: As good as they are at splashing colors across the canvas, they also have the technical skills to slow things down when necessary, taking time to let the more wistful moments breathe.
tell someone you love them is filled with ups and downs, reflecting the feelings that run through our hearts every day. No matter what we’re feeling at any moment, it’s always a good time to call someone up – a friend or a member of our blood or chosen family – and talk, share stories, laugh, and say we love them. Even if we have to call someone to sugarcoat some bad news, or tell them we’re not doing so well mentally, or tell a secret we probably shouldn’t share, at the end of the day, connection matters more than anything.
Funds For Jimmy knows that well, having been a major part of their scene for the last several years. Their new record is a big “We love you” to the community, having shared so much of themselves through their music and at their shows. They’re there for their fans, just as their fans are there for them. And hopefully, there will be many more fans to come and share the love.
Maybe Jimmy will be one of them, and he’ll finally get his funds.
Take a listen to “Resolve” from tell someone you love them below.
Written by Will Sisskind
