by Jason Lymangrover
Consisting of vocalist/pianist Johnny Whitney and guitarist/bassist Cody Votolato from the Blood Brothers along with keyboardist/bassist/drummer Jay Clark from Pretty Girls Make Graves, Jaguar Love are a West Coast indie rock trio that hopped on the fast road to success in the summer of 2007. Votolato and Clark were neighbors in Seattle and became friends when the Blood Brothers and Pretty Girls Make Graves toured together. When talk of forming a new band was introduced, the two made a move to Portland to join up with Whitney and write new music. Within a few months they had four songs recorded and started considering different labels. After a brief tour with Queens of the Stone Age, Jaguar Love signed a deal with indie big leaguers Matador in January of 2008. In late spring, the trio's debut EP was released, and the full-length Take Me to the Sea arrived just after, in August.