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In pro wrestling, larger-than-life characters act out good-versus-evil storylines in a heightened atmosphere. For Kate Meizner, the vocalist, guitarist, and principal songwriter for the Brooklyn sludge-pop band Jobber, the spectacle of the squared circle doubles as a way for her to process what she calls mundane and very serious struggles under capitalism.

It doesnt let you wallow, but it still captures a crude version of reality, she continues. Its a way to laugh so you dont scream. Jobbers debut full-length, Jobber to the Stars, captures that moment between a horrified yelp and a gut-busting guffaw in 11 twisty songs that cover their candied-center hooks in sweat and blood and muck, like the live-wire opener Raw Is War and the distortion-shrouded postcard from the edge Pillmans Got A Gun.

Its power pop that busts itself open to reveal gnarly, messy bits lurking within. The albums title plays on the bands namea wrestling term that refers to a person who does the job, or loses, in a matchand Meizners own journey over the records two-plus-year genesis. In pro wrestling, a jobber to the stars is a performer who always loses to big names, but not to total unknowns, she says. Theyre good enough to make the stars look great, but never the ones pushed to the top themselves.

Meizner and her bandmatesdrummer-vocalist Michael Falcone, guitarist-keyboardist Michael Julius, and bassist Miles Tothrecorded Jobber to the Stars with Justin Pizzoferrato (Dinosaur Jr, Body/Head, Editrix) at Sonelab in Easthampton, Massachusetts and with Aron Kobayashi Ritch (Momma, Hotline TNT, Squirrel Flower) at Studio G in Brooklyn.