Neon noir

Jane Leo: “Wow”

A lot of rising acts have made their way into the Austin pop culture lexicon since the pandemic started wrapping up. But one of the most memorable new names actually comes from two familiar favorites joining forces. We’re talking about our March 2023 Artist of the Month Jane Jane Leo, formed by Jane Ellen Bryant and Daniel Leopold using the Sofi Tukker approach to their band handle.

This power pair popped up in the summer of 2021 with their single “Tell Me (I’m on your Mind)”, making a compelling first impression with what’s still their most-spun track to date. After coming out of the gate big and bold, these art rock wonder twins compiled their introductory batch of originals into an eponymous debut full-length this past February. Since then we’ve basically been begging for more from this power duo, and boy did they deliver last week.

On Friday Jane Leo issued us to the kickass opening chapter for their next album with “Wow”. Packing wonky, high-octane energy into two-and-a-half minutes, “Wow” could easily become a companion piece to the chart-topping tunes of Post Malone and Tiesto bearing the same title and near-identical durations. Tomorrow Jane Leo jumps onto their inaugural national tour alongside Cannons, one that”ll swing by Austin on September 20th at Stubb’s and October 6th at ACL Fest. But today the big news is the amazing music video for “Wow” that flew in this morning.

In it Bryant and Leopold heed the call of a conspicuous red hotline, snap on the spandex, and transform into unconventional-yet-competent caped crusaders that give the Justice League a run for their initials. So behold JL’s superhuman abilities of pedestrian protection, fire extinguishing, and…vacuuming? It’s a vibrant divergence from their typical high contrast black-and-white “neon noir” visual brand that’s as playful as it is punchy. On top of that, every shot in this convivial sprint is so much of a treat that you can easily find a friend or five that’ll love it. Who knows? You might just end up recruiting your own set of aural Avengers that uses “Wow” as their anthem to assemble.