Of Limbo turn the tables on a master manipulatrix with their powerful and personal new single and homemade video Joke’s On You — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
Taking a brief breather from the raucous rock ’n’ roll anthems that are their usual stock in trade, the Australian-born, California-based siblings turn down the volume without losing a shred of intensity in this pointed, potent acoustic number about flipping the script on a poisonous puppet mistress.
“Joke’s On You is about recognizing gaslighting techniques in a relationship,” the band’s Jake Davies says. “You see the person feigning tears and storming off expecting you to chase after them. Most of us are all too familiar with these kinds of manipulative tactics by now. But when you first start to really recognize it, it’s a relief and kind of empowering. Because you realize it’s not you…It’s all them.”
The band shot the video for Joke’s On You entirely on an iPhone 14 at a park next to their mom’s house in Australia, armed with nothing but a $20 LED from Amazon and a six-pack of tall boys. Jake explains “The red and blue color overlays are meant to be a representation of being two-faced.”
Of Limbo have been a two-headed rock ’n’ roll beast since the brothers were youngsters growing up in Melbourne. “I first put a guitar in Luke’s hands when he was 10,” Jake recalls. “I taught him the nylon string acoustic intro to Unforgiven by Metallica, from there he was hooked!”
The brothers were drawn to the U.S. when Luke was accepted to the Berklee School of Music in Boston. Jake relocated to Long Beach, started playing in bands, and invited Luke out to California. “Every night turned into us partying and writing music,” Jake says. “We couldn’t record it on our phones fast enough — It was just pouring out of us! We knew Luke needed to drop out of Berklee and move in with me permanently in Long Beach to do this together.”
One of those party-filled nights inspired the band name. “One night after heavy drinking at the bar, Luke was struggling,” Jake says. “I asked him, ‘how you doing over there, Luke’? He said. ‘I don’t know man… I’m a little left of limbo,’ and it jumped out at us as a band name. Oof Limbo has a mystery to it… It’s a bit weird and we definitely have to say the name twice when people ask. But hey — what’s Pearl Jam? Eventually the name just becomes the band identity of the band — not the definition of the words.”
And it matches their refreshingly unique hard-rock sound, that doesn’t just follow current trends. “We absolutely strive to not repeat ourselves and create as many different colours as possible. As far as influences — Alice In Chains, Soundgarden, Rage Against The Machine are all at the top. As far as how diverse the sound is, Faith No More is a band who I really respect for their ability to do this too.”
Of Limbo have toured with Wolfmother, Hinder, Candlebox, Buckcherry and Joyous Wolf, among others. “Performance-wise, for us, it’s always been about making a rock show a party again” says Jake. “I can’t tell you how many shows I’ve been to where the people just stand there like zombies that have been herded into a room to just stare at the meat on stage and robotically clap when a song ends.
“You know the craziest thing about it? All it takes is like two people at the front to start losing themselves, dancing and having a good time to break people out of this weird self-conscious trance. It’s as if it sweeps across the rest of the crowd like an electrical current shocking them all back to life and everyone has so much more fun after that. If you want a passive, one-sided entertainment experience, go to a movie.”
But first, watch the video for Joke’s On You above, check out the track on your preferred streamer HERE, sample more music from Of Limbo below, and have a laugh on their website, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and TikTok.
