Yes, Officer: Ignore the Town Crier
Yes, Officer is an alt-rock project out of St. John’s making, as Jeremy Harnum — the person behind the project — puts it, “loud and abrasive music for those who like loud and abrasive music.” I never would’ve described my own taste in music that way, but after spending the day with Ignore The Town Crier — the project’s brand new album — maybe I need to rethink that.
I’ve had the record on repeat and I’m thoroughly enjoying it.
Yes, Officer sounds like a callback to the best of hard-edged, alt-rock… and the ethos is right. It’s about making “no apologies for who you are,” Harnum’s bio says, and making sure your noise is heard.
It’s loud but subtle, energetic but reflective, and incredibly well-crafted.
Yes, Officer began back in 2017 in Harnum’s hometown of Winterton as what he describes as “a creative outlet while living alone in the bay and working through a personal coming out journey.” In the early days, he wrote, performed, recorded, and produced everything himself at home. By 2019, he’d assembled a live band for performances. Now, in 2026, Harnum has released a new collection of tracks featuring production work from Mark Feener, Robert Kelly, and Grammy Award-winning producer Greg Wells.
It’s an impressive trajectory.
Just this week, Wells wrote: “Jeremy wrote every song, played every instrument, sang all vocals, and has delivered Ignore the Town Crier, a world-class explosive rock album…”
It’s a strong endorsement, but one Harnum has earned. Ignore The Town Crier is the kind of album that grabs ahold and doesn’t let go. It’s loud but subtle, energetic but reflective, and incredibly well-crafted. This is a collection I’ll be coming back to again and again.
Standout tracks for me include the title track, ‘Let Him Sleep’ (which started making me think of Placebo circa 1998), and ‘Early Grave’.
Check out Ignore The Town Crier now on Bandcamp or wherever you get your music.
I’m obsessed with music from Newfoundland and Labrador…
It’s fresh, wild, and full of surprises. The artists here are pumping out so much new stuff, it’s hard to keep up. So, I started a playlist of my faves—tons of genres, but the only rule is they’re local and totally repeat-worthy. I update it regularly, so follow along (on Spotify, Apple Music or Youtube).
Trust me, there’s a ton of good stuff coming your way.
