‘Myths, Legends and Other Amazing Adventures, Volume.2’ came about when the Aquabats decided to have a go at releasing all their wacky old songs, ideas and bits and pieces that didn’t make various albums in the past, or were just too crazy for inclusion. Luckily for the unsuspecting public however, they did decided to let these crazy choons loose into the big wide world, and so we arrive at their latest CD. Well that’s what they claim anyway, but due to their completely unpredictable nature I’m not entirely sure..
Anyway, the first tune, like many others by this eccentric artist, could easily have been composed and performed under heavy influence; as ‘Robot Theme Song’ begins on its wonderful journey, images of the magic roundabout, some kind of Disney adventure and a march of monkey soldiers all immediately spring to mind – and a jolly affair it is too, for its precious 64 seconds. After its abrupt end, comes ‘Hey Luno’, another upbeat affair from the Aquabats we all know and love, with the blatant lack of respect for lyrical sincerity – ‘look at you, you’re the angry clown, you’re trying to push all the kids around’ – seemingly unaware that lyrics are a source for meaning, the Aquabats are as refreshing as they are entertaining; no doubt you’ll be singing ‘Hey Luno’ regularly for days, often in socially unacceptable places such as queues for kebabs/chips. Couple this with an excellent intermission with what seems like radio samples in the background, and infamous trumpets and ‘Hey Luno’ becomes an instant favourite. Dammit I’m this far and i’ve only covered 2 songs…
‘Pool Party’ starts off with what is blatantly a conversation between two slackers who sit on their ass watching T.V all day; and I can relate to that – suddenly bursting into a tune with the two getting increasingly excited about said party. ‘Pool party’ continues the lyrical excellence of earlier Aquabats offerings ‘Pool party baby, it was a cool party, cool pool party, la la la la’; as timeless as it is funny, lyrical content which will surely be studied for many years to come. And just as you thought it couldn’t get any better, it does. ‘Pizza Day’, one of the catchiest songs I have ever had the misfortune to hear (and I say misfortune, because I had to sing it constantly for about a week); it has one of THE best choruses ever, and I don’t exaggerate; an excellent horn section and catchy guitar riff combine perfectly with the vocal style of the lead, making for a song which even those with the most minute sense of humour should own.
‘Dear Spike’ continues the utterly odd trend and immunitable style of the Bats, but still keeps the quality of the record up to a high standard, suddenly reverting every now and again toward a bizarre twilight zone type interval, then quickly reverting back to its old purpose and giddy enthusiasm that seems to encompass most of their songs. Following on is the superb ‘I Fell Asleep on my arm’, an extremely well performed Korn/limp Bizkit/Rage Against the Machine parody which will be instantly recognisable, and funny, to all of you who have ever had to sit through a friend’s nu-metal collection – the highlight of which is the blatant piss-take at the end, of Korn’s ‘Freak on a Leash’ where the vocals descend into blatant farcical babbling. Genius.
‘Radiation Song’ takes on a different Western style, sounding like it should be the soundtrack to some Southern ranch more than anything else; using the old comedic trick of using seemingly horrifying lyrics with a carefree tune – anyway, it works perfectly and you’ll almost definitely be grinning through the entire song, as the simple guitars carry the tune along with the excellent wavy vocals; distinctiveness and originality here both score very highly. Things aren’t slowing down here though, as ‘Adventure Today’ proves, with a fantastic intro ‘Bo, Bo Boh, Boh Boh’ – granted, on paper it doesn’t sound like much but is undeniably great; especially when the chorus kicks in. ‘The Baker’ takes on a more creepy yet still amusing ‘Attacked by snakes’ like tone, and is a welcome diversion, but at the risk of boring the shit out of you, I won’t go into it further. ‘Danger Woman’, ‘Sandy Face’ and ‘Wild Sea’ are all equally excellent – Worms make Dirt is relatively weird, yet still endears itself to you, simply because of it’s quirkiness.
This CD must be in your collection, simply because of it’s natural ability to make you laugh out loud, improving your mood instantly. Buy one for yourself, then for all your friends – then sit back and wait for a better life..
nick