By John Faussemagne
On Valentines Day this year, Jane Remover released the first of two expected projects for 2025. This one under the pseudonym venturing. Created by Jane, venturing was a fake band from South Dakota created that supposedly was active in the 1990s and early 2000s. Jane’s role in this storyline is of someone who stumbled across the music although when you listen it is clear who the lead singer is. The album Ghostholding has allowed her to continue more of an indie rock sound while her namesake’s music is moving back towards a more electronic sound.
Throughout the project, Jane moves around different styles of indie rock. Having come out of the electronic scene and beginning to experiment with guitar music and indie rock on her album Frailty and diving deeper into the sound on Census Designated, the way Jane makes a guitar sound is incredible. I heard someone a while ago call Jane’s music “Guitar music from the vision of a producer,” and I don’t think there is a better way to explain it. The song “Believe” is a great example of this where the layering of all of the guitars creates a beautiful sound. Over this, Jane uses an unusual cadence that fits that song perfectly and brings it to life. Another great example of layering is on the following song “Guesthouse” where the layered sounds outside of the typical instrumentation you would expect to hear create a beautiful landscape. In the background you can softly hear children talking, but the thing that really makes this one of the best songs is a simple siren sound that plays throughout the song. Another highlight is “Recoil,” a song I had to stop and replay a couple of times before I moved on. If this band is supposed to be from the 90s, Jane hits the nail on the head here. This song is a perfect mix of so many styles coming from that era. Jane’s voice is nothing short of infectious here and her production is once again stellar.
While Jane became known for her production style (deservingly so), her songwriting ability should not be understated. On “Dead forever” for example, Jane creates a heartbreaking landscape that warrants multiple listens just to hear what she is saying in the background. While singing “Those boys, they spiked my drink,” you can faintly hear Jane in the background groaning for help painting a pretty gruesome scene. The song for the most part deals with issues with being in love, but only being seen as a sexual object. Relating that feeling of being used to the music industry and how artists get chewed up and spit out. Another lyrical standout is the final track “Sister.” Here, Jane dives deep into themes of recklessness, depression and chemical dependency. The chorus of the song sees Jane wish she could drink till the Angels take her away. During the song, she realizes the pain she is causing and how her recklessness is hurting those around her, even showing an extreme case where she dreams she kills a boyfriend while drinking behind the wheel. It is an incredibly depressing note to end the album on especially as the final lyrics are “The girls they tell me I’m all out of love.” Instead of seeing herself grow and move past it, she ends up succumbing to her issues and becomes left behind by the people whom she has hurt.
But, those are supposedly the words of the 1990s rock band venturing and not Jane right? Either way, this album is a masterclass on all fronts and a great direction from Jane. I love the concept of this project and it really does make me wonder how much of it is performative and how much of it is Jane truly struggling.
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