JACOB LONDON

House-music purists take their genre with a piety that demands for somebody to give it a wedgie. That's where Seattle's Jacob London (Dave Pezzner and Bob Hansen) barge in. Injecting vats of quirky sounds and ribald rhythms into their funnily funky tracks, Jacob London provoke much-needed chuckles in the Church of House Music. Anyone who samples Bling-Bling from the Bumfights DVD, episodes of Harvey Birdman, and farm-animal noises deserves respect.

The duo's 12-year musical odyssey has culminated in 2003 with their signing to Luke Solomon and Derrick Carter's untouchable Classic label; it's almost akin to the Three Stooges getting into the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Jacob London's new Classic EP, Brown Alert, takes house's lubricious grooves to slapstick-comedy heaven.

With so much house mired in formula, I wonder if Jacob London are on a mission to shake up the genre's status quo?

"Well, of course our first mission is to totally kick ass," the duo answers collectively. "Shaking things up follows closely behind that. Ninety-nine percent of the house music being released these days bores the underpants off of us. The bar has been set so low that house is dying of apathy. If we can contribute to the cause of bringing it back to life in even the smallest capacity, we'll be happy."

Are Seattle house fans feelin' Jacob London's unconventional, irreverent brand of the music?

"There's always been a really supportive group of people in the house scene here," they say. "Our music is all about having fun, and people like to have fun."

There's a fine line between humor and wackiness in music. When the latter enters into a track, it's usually disastrous. How do JL gauge what's funny as opposed to clownish? Where do they draw the line, if anywhere?

"The as-of-yet untold secret formula to the Jacob London sound is that we draw no lines. We are perfectly willing to do anything it takes to crack ourselves up in the studio. Also, we have always been huge fans of novelty records, and we [believe] that if you're going to do something, you might as well do it all the way. Our tracks regularly feature both humor and wackiness--when done right, you can pull off either one with stunning results. As with most comedic entertainment, timing is everything."

How has JL's life changed since signing with Classic, and what are their goals following that great achievement?

"We had been getting some good attention before the Classic records, but obviously once those hit the shelves, it really kicked things up a notch. We've been spending the past five months on all the remix offers we got, and now we're ready to start back in on some original material. We're a bit tired of making records exclusively for the 'club scene,' and we'd really like to put together an album of material that explores some other avenues. Of course, we'll still always make dance records, but we'd love to focus on simply making music that people genuinely enjoy listening to outside of the club setting.

"Along with that, we're going to put together a live act with real musicians and as few laptops as possible. In the meantime, though, we're working on some international DJ gigs where we will be spreading the message of the trees to all the people of the world. Oh, and we're probably going to play in Cleveland soon, too." DAVE SEGAL

More info at www.jacoblondon.com, www.classicmusiccompany.com, and www.squid-records.com.

segal@thestranger.com