Music: Fight like apes *
Fight Like Apes and The Mystery of the Golden Medallion (Model Citizen)
Friday September 26 2008
Over the course of a number of EPs, they have tried to distil their live energy -- but with mixed results. Theirs is not the sort of music that one would necessarily want to play at home -- what's charming and endearing live, can end up being really annoying once it's recorded in the studio.
And that's exactly the problem that befalls this debut album. Far from it being the masterpiece that some more excitable members of my profession have suggested, the only thing remarkable about it is how pedestrian it is. There's an almighty racket all right, but it's a pretty tedious one -- and not nearly as clever as these people think they are.
Lead singer MayKay is the best thing about the band, thanks to her striking vocals. Unfortunately she gets drowned out repeatedly by the unlovely shouts of bassist Tom and keyboard player Pockets. Imagine a duet between Andrew WK and one of the guys from Jackass and you come reasonably close to grasping how God-awful it is.
The opening two tracks Something Global and Jake Summers suggest that there is a decent band trying to break out, but the rest are about as tedious as their titles (Lumpy Dough; Recyclable Ass).
Burn it: Jake Summers
