Grace, Flair and Distance - EP Review

Jo From School released her debut project, "Grace, Flair and Distance", on the seventh of August. It has been a lengthy timeline for Jo; I've followed her journey since October of 2024. Since then, she has rebranded from Jo Geller to Jo From School and has performed multiple live shows, opening for artists such as Esme Emerson and Skullcrusher. With its unique sound and amalgamation of many emotions, this Jo From School EP is truly something special.

Jo released 3 singles for this EP, the first being "Chicken", her first-ever published piece of music, released on the sixth of May. This song speaks of Jo's regret and bottled-up emotions, paired with some beautiful instrumentals. Chicken's music video is a video of Jo on a tennis court - resembling her battle with melancholic emotions and regret. "Chicken" was followed by "Julia Roberts", released on the tenth of June. Julia Roberts is my favourite song on the EP; I love its organised chaos and true emotionally-charged rock and roll feel. Both "Chicken" and "Julia Roberts" had been previously released on SoundCloud and YouTube, respectively; however, the officially published versions are far more evolved and true versions of the song. Julia Roberts had a music video of its own, this time staged on an ice rink where Jo and her amazing band play the song on the ice; the cool tones of the music video represent Jo's sadness that is expressed throughout the song. The final of three singles is called "Weight", which was released on the fifteenth of July. Weight was not paired with a big music video like the rest of the singles; Jo opted for a simple visualiser of her performing the song, featuring only herself filmed by her sister. I think this is extremely representative of Weight as a song; the simpler video matches the song's slower and less produced feel compared to the other two singles. Weight is a song about the feeling of sulking shoulders and emotional frustration, as she sighs, "I weigh the world down" while closing out the song and the EP, as it is last on the tracklist. I think Jo chose 3 brilliant singles for this EP, not exposing all that she can bring and leaving some surprise for the EP release.

The full EP, "Grace, Flair and Distance", was then released on the seventh of August. The project paired the three previous singles with three new tracks, making it a perfectly balanced and even listen, coming out to approximately nineteen minutes. The three new pieces, "Release", "Six Years of Keeping On" and "Underhand", all contained their own unique flair, despite not being chosen to be featured as singles; all three can stand out on their own on the EP and not be labelled as a "filler track", something new artists often struggle with in their early projects. "Release" opens the EP with acoustic guitars as a radiant portrait of Jo's own struggles with stress and self-turmoil. The EP as a whole is a perfect presentation of Jo's amazingly versatile vocals and gleaming ability. Her talent for creating chaos in her songs in such a dazzling and artistic manner is not something that can be understated. This project has a gorgeous, messy, and cosy feeling - it is clear that Jo's band plays such a massive part when creating her music, both in audio and visual versions. Each one of her instrumentalists thrives in their own way on this project and, as someone who has seen her play many of these songs in person, I can say the live versions don't disappoint and have an incredible ability to portray all before mentioned feelings in a blockbuster type of way for everyone in the audience. There really is such a close-knit feeling when it comes to Jo as an artist and all she brings to the table both in production and performance.

So what's next for Jo From School? She is undoubtedly expected to perform in many more live events, supporting artists and gaining her own following, so make sure to keep your eyes peeled to see if she's coming to a venue near you. As someone who has been waiting for this EP for almost 2 years, I can say she definitely has even more to come; there are many songs I've heard performed live that are not in this EP that are worthy of their own release and are sure to make an appearance on future projects. I can confidently say that Jo From School truly is a one-of-a-kind artist and one that everyone should be keeping an eye on. I hope you enjoyed reading, and please do go give Jo From School's first EP "Grace Flair and Distance" a listen on all streaming platforms now.