!!!- Strange Weather, Isn’t It?
Berlin has been the musical Mecca for those seeking a more dangerous, darker vibe. It worked for Bowie, Iggy and U2, as the air of death and pain hung thick over their recordings in the German capital. However for so called “dance punks” !!! (pronounced Chk Chk Chk, just so we’re clear), prevailing gloom is not on the agenda.
What Berlin has been conductive for with the above artists has also been their very best work, and this certainly rings true for !!!, with Strange Weather, Isn’t It? Aside from anything, their new album boasts some of the best track names in recent times (anyone for Jamie, My Intentions Are Bass and Even Judas Gave Jesus A Kiss?). Their fourth LP is, for the most part, a joyous racket, despite its recording location and the shocking death of drummer Jerry Fuchs, and this event certainly doesn’t seem to affect lyrical content. The album is also far more approachable then previous effort Myth Takes. Dialling down much of the experimentation, the focus is on tight and approachable funk work outs.
Which makes the opening one-two of lead single AM/FM and The Most Certain Sure a slight disappointment. The former steals the drum loop from Fool’s Gold (not necessarily a bad thing, but hardly a fresh approach) whilst the latter’s vocal by frontman Nic Offer sails a bit too close to Right Said Fred (coincidental as the Californians surely won’t be familiar with Richard Fairbrass and co). The aforementioned Jamie... meanwhile isn’t as funny as its title suggests, and as a result sounds more like a parody.
It all comes into better focus with Wannagain Wannagain, all fuzzy, itchy rhythms and horns. It gets the party started a bit late, but still in style, begging the listener to get up and move. Steady As The Sidewalk Cracks brings the band closer to funk pioneers Parliament with languid verses surging into an explosive chorus. It lacks George Clinton’s lunacy but it really doesn’t need it.
Jump Back is another peak, far sparser in instrumentation than the rest of the album, resting on a sinewy bassline, which brings to mind !!!’s 2003 single Me and Giuliani Down By the School Yard. Even Judas... meanwhile discusses Biblical interpretation over an ever building instrumental cyclone, ending in a drum explosion, and it’s percussion that once again drives the band on the rest of this album.
When the band announced their Berlin album, this probably wasn’t what the masses were expecting. Despite this, Strange Weather...stands as their most strangely commercial effort to date, bringing back the funk without it feeling faintly embarrassing. A thrilling aural spectacle.
4/5
Essential Tracks:
Wannagain Wannagain
Steady As The Sidewalk Cracks
Jump Back
Even Judas Gave Jesus A Kiss
Berlin has been the musical Mecca for those seeking a more dangerous, darker vibe. It worked for Bowie, Iggy and U2, as the air of death and pain hung thick over their recordings in the German capital. However for so called “dance punks” !!! (pronounced Chk Chk Chk, just so we’re clear), prevailing gloom is not on the agenda.
What Berlin has been conductive for with the above artists has also been their very best work, and this certainly rings true for !!!, with Strange Weather, Isn’t It? Aside from anything, their new album boasts some of the best track names in recent times (anyone for Jamie, My Intentions Are Bass and Even Judas Gave Jesus A Kiss?). Their fourth LP is, for the most part, a joyous racket, despite its recording location and the shocking death of drummer Jerry Fuchs, and this event certainly doesn’t seem to affect lyrical content. The album is also far more approachable then previous effort Myth Takes. Dialling down much of the experimentation, the focus is on tight and approachable funk work outs.
Which makes the opening one-two of lead single AM/FM and The Most Certain Sure a slight disappointment. The former steals the drum loop from Fool’s Gold (not necessarily a bad thing, but hardly a fresh approach) whilst the latter’s vocal by frontman Nic Offer sails a bit too close to Right Said Fred (coincidental as the Californians surely won’t be familiar with Richard Fairbrass and co). The aforementioned Jamie... meanwhile isn’t as funny as its title suggests, and as a result sounds more like a parody.
It all comes into better focus with Wannagain Wannagain, all fuzzy, itchy rhythms and horns. It gets the party started a bit late, but still in style, begging the listener to get up and move. Steady As The Sidewalk Cracks brings the band closer to funk pioneers Parliament with languid verses surging into an explosive chorus. It lacks George Clinton’s lunacy but it really doesn’t need it.
Jump Back is another peak, far sparser in instrumentation than the rest of the album, resting on a sinewy bassline, which brings to mind !!!’s 2003 single Me and Giuliani Down By the School Yard. Even Judas... meanwhile discusses Biblical interpretation over an ever building instrumental cyclone, ending in a drum explosion, and it’s percussion that once again drives the band on the rest of this album.
When the band announced their Berlin album, this probably wasn’t what the masses were expecting. Despite this, Strange Weather...stands as their most strangely commercial effort to date, bringing back the funk without it feeling faintly embarrassing. A thrilling aural spectacle.
4/5
Essential Tracks:
Wannagain Wannagain
Steady As The Sidewalk Cracks
Jump Back
Even Judas Gave Jesus A Kiss
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