Jock McBastard - Breaking Barriers (2024)

As musicians get older, the phrase "back to their roots" usually starts to be used unnecessarily frequently. This is usually due to pure convenience and laxity, but of course there are exceptions that confirm the rule. Jocke Karlsson is both good and bad not like everyone else, so instead of going back to his roots, he stepped out of the box really hard and blew up every single barrier, with such force that the pentyl tube & C4 appear like china puffs in comparison.

Breaking barriers is Jocke's second solo album. But unlike Here we go again, which from start to finish was a manifesto of struggle, Breaking barriers is a pure country record with all that that implies. The lyrics of course deal with heartbreak and all the other tragedies a cowboy has to go through in life (it's a very tough world out there) and all with Jocke's personal twist. In other words, we can promise buckets of dirty, unkempt language and crazy antics in the lyrics. Snowflakes and decorated people can see themselves as warned.

The record maintains a high country quality right through, which in this context means that Jocke does not try to imitate other country musicians, but is, as always, a trendsetter with a clear respect for the integrity of the genre.