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[MUSIC] THE SAVAGE ANIMAL
"First Impressions of Cake" |
05.11.11 |
BY MIKEY MIGO
Over the past few years now I’ve taken one day a month to enlighten myself on a band or artist that I’ve not given a chance to before. Sometimes it’s me just being stubborn or closed-minded, but often times I’ve just not taken the time to pay attention to band. For whatever reason my ears and attention span didn’t cross paths with certain stuff. It doesn’t mean it sucks, it just means I’ve not heard it yet.
That’s what this column is all about. I listen to a band’s entire studio discography, typically someone with four to six albums in total, and take it all in. Good or bad, I want to have a valid opinion. The only way to REALLY do it right is to take in their entire body of work. By doing this I’ve given chances and an open mind to bands I’d probably never care about. In recent months I’ve taken listens to The Wallflowers, Kyuss, The National, and Pink. Obviously I didn’t enjoy all of them, but I listened. I’ve taken in some really good stuff like The Black Keys, Arcade Fire, Regina Spektor, and Simon and Garfunkel and some pretty bad stuff like Kings of Leon, Breaking Benjamin, Rise Against, and Portishead. Some bands were rough to get through and I’ve gone out of my way to never hear them again, but I don’t regret being open-minded about it.
Why Cake?
I know OF the band Cake, but I’ve just never really indulged. They have six albums, but the only two songs I can definitely credit to them is “Going The Distance” and the “Short Skirt and Long Jacket” song. I want to credit the old 90’s “Vasoline” song to them, but I’m 99.9% sure that’s Flaming Lips. What I’ve heard I think I’ve enjoyed or have been amused by, but I just don’t have a full opinion on them. I’m optimistic because six albums is a long time to sit with a band. Here goes nothing…
Motorcade of Generosity
(1994 – 43 minutes) - The first album starts off with "Comanche", a light strummer that crones and sways along pleasantly enough. It’s tongue in cheek and has horns. How would this ever get old? There is a collection of songs with various tempos, but all in all they stick pretty hard into their genre. It’s the stuff that 90’s college movies told us to listen to. "Pentagram" starts off pretty cool and then goes into a weird little blue grass track. It’s amusing, but forgettable. "Jolene" has a really cool breakdown and shows some signs of “not always the same-ness”… or “variety” to the logical. I am a big fan of the soulful guitar work on "You Part the Waters", but it’s a pretty cluttered song overall. The big single from the album was "Rock 'N' Roll Lifestyle". I don’t remember it, but I do really enjoy it. It pokes pretty damn hard suburbanite music fans in all the right ways. I’m not sure if I hate "Mr. Mastodon Farm" or love it. It has a fun simplicity to it, but at the same time almost comes off as if this band is trying a little too hard to be “quirky” and “different”. There is a certain clap-a-long factor to the songs that could make for a great time. To me, this stuff mainly sounds dated. That’s not necessarily a bad thing because I love me some old 90’s stuff. I’m just not overly excited about anything I’ve heard. I liked a few songs and moments, but it went in and out of my 2011 ears without much sticking. I imagine a lot of fedoras, wallet chains, and ironic ties.
Fashion Nugget
(1996 – 49 minutes) - This second album comes about two years after the first. On "Frank Sinatra" you can almost instantly hear the band’s evolution. They sound crisper and on their A-Game. It’s still pretty much more of the same, but it’s the best of that sameness never the less. I totally thought "The Distance" was titled “Going The Distance”. Of course I’ve heard it. I’ve always been a fan of this song and I don’t know why I didn’t listen to Cake sooner. I mean there’s not much else so far like it, but still. It’s the best thing I’ve heard so far today. I can’t help but really like "Friend Is a Four Letter Word". It’s a more down tempo track, but it’s some good and full sounding rock and roll. I thought "Daria" would have been cooler. Mid 90’s angsty irony type of alt rock would be a perfect combo with the late MTV chick-toon. The opening and actually the majorty of the song of "Race Car Ya-Yas" comes off as a blatant swagger jacking of Primus. It’s less than a minute and a half, but I’m going to have trouble shaking that thought now. I HAVE heard their cover of "I Will Survive". It has to be one of their biggest hits. It was used in a lot of randomness and got a good amount of airplay. I want to hate it, but it’s a fun and vulgar update. "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps" is a cover of some obscure foreign folk song. It’s got a cooler and melody than most of their original work. The best musical composition on the album is "It's Coming Down". I couldn’t tell you the narrative of the song, but the music is pretty cool. I guess "Nugget" is their attempt at an ironic rap. It surprisingly entertains me, but mainly because it’s pretty vulgar. They attempt an ironic country ballad in "She'll Come Back to Me". I can’t take it seriously. This album was not as good as the first, but had two big singles on it. The rest, and hell even the two big singles, all sound the same. The thought of “I hate rock music with horns” came to mind for the first time in my life. I’m typically open minded, but two albums into this I’m in dire need for some variety and something more than monotone ironic lyrics. I am going to stay optimistic, but yeeesh.
Prolonging the Magic
(1998 – 48 minutes) - Their third album is supposed to be less snarky and more “from the heart”. The opening track, "Satan Is My Motor" is fun but the second track, "Mexico" is solid stuff. It’s a slow burning western sounding ditty. I know the single from this one as well. If you were a listener to the radio in the late 90’s and don’t know "Never There" then you’re lying about something. It’s one of their more solid tracks. It just feels like a single. That’s not a bad thing, but it makes everything else sound like filler. The piano arrangement is surprisingly awesome on "You Turn the Screws", a narrative about the music business. The melody and delivery grows on you really quickly. It’s gotta be up there in terms of my favorite of their work. You can’t hate "Sheep Go to Heaven". It’s one of their most fun tracks to nod your head a long to. I am bias though. The majority of this album sounds the same. It’s the same tempo, same cynical lyrics, and blandness when it comes down to it. "Alpha Beta Parking Lot" varies a little, but mainly because it’s another attempt at a down tempo ballad. I think "Cool Blue Reason" just because of the weird sounding production. The vocals sound as if they’re circling around your ears. The coolness goes away quickly though. The album wraps up with a down tempo rocker with "Where Would I Be?" It’s one of the more solid tracks on the album, but at this point you’re just happy it’s over. This album wasn’t painful to listen to, but just a tad repetitive and boring. I like hearing musicians and bands evolve. These guys aren’t really evolving at all. If anything, they sound even more uninspired.
Comfort Eagle
(2001 – 37 minutes) - I like the music that opens up the album on "Opera Singer". The vocals have JUST A HINT more personality than the other albums, but it makes a huge difference. The funk-pop of "Meanwhile, Rick James..." is surprising as well. This stuff is just sounding better out of nowhere. They get really pop-rock conventional with "Shadow Stabbing", which is believe it or not a welcomed change up. It reminds me of an old pop rock song from the 80’s from someone like The Cars. The single here was "Short Skirt/Long Jacket". I’ve watched television more than twice in the past ten years so I’ve heard this song plenty of times. This song was fun when it came out, but has been used so much that it almost feels like a commercial jingle at this point. I do find myself enjoying the ranty story of "Commissioning a Symphony in C". "Arco Arena" sounds really familiar. It’s only a minute and half and would have been a great instrumental if not for the random vocal add-ons tossed in. I also find myself nodding a long to "Comfort Eagle". It’s just a bouncy and fun “screw you” to “the norm”. "Long Line of Cars" starts off like an old hip hop song, but the vocals hit and you remember it’s not that cool. The other big track here is "Love You Madly". I’ve heard it in random movies and random places. I don’t think any of those places were actually the radio. It’s an okay enough song. This one ends with a somewhat trippy "World of Two". This album was better than the last one for sure. It may be crazy to those who have been fans of this band, but I almost want to say that this is Cake’s best work. It’s not all the same sounding and shows SOME exploration. My optimistic rises.
Pressure Chief
(2004 – 36 minutes) - This album starts off with "Wheels". On the track we’re told the “wheels keep spinnin’ round”. I’m sure there’s some big social commentary there, but I enjoy the irony in the fact that they just keep cranking out the same album over and over again. There are varied degrees of good and bad, but it’s the same. It’s catchy never the less. The single here is "No Phone". I THINK I’ve heard this song, keeping a steady one track an album spree here. It’s good. There is a more electronic funk to this. The extra synth and the overall down tempo chill factor to this a good portion of the album has me pleased. The other single here is "Carbon Monoxide", a song I can firmly say I’ve never heard. It’s weird stuff. It’s as if Cake is trying to be a salsa version of Devo or some shit. That description makes it sound WAY cooler than it has any right to be. The cover of "The Guitar Man" is solid. It stands out because it sounds like an actual good ol’ fashion rock song. I’m annoyed the album didn’t end with "End of the Movie". The title of it makes tons of sense and the song would have made for a really pleasant way to wrap it up. Instead we get "Palm of Your Hand" and "Tougher Than It Is". They could have been moved around or even left off if you ask me. This album feels like it’s just there. It put me in a slight daze and I found myself often spacing out from the music in my ears completely. It hit me. This album is missing the horns. I’m not big on the horns, but at least it was an identity of their own. The synth is calming, but the album comes off as if Cake is trying really hard to put their own twists on Devo and Talking Heads. Depending on how you look at it, this could be the worst album. While some of their stuff annoys me and some I like, this was just there floating.
Showroom of Compassion
(2011 – 40 minutes) - The most recent album by the band called “Cake” starts off “Federal Funding”. The sound is very noticeably different. It’s got more of that old gritty piano funk to it. It’s less monotone, more sung and the sound is much fuller. It sounds nothing like Cake, but I like it. I didn’t think I’d hear anything from this, but I HAVE heard “Long Time” on TV or in a movie somewhere. Dammit. “Got To Move” and cover “What’s Now Is Now” run together. They’re bland-tempo’d and nothing. Then it happened. The coolest song I’ve heard in awhile, “Mustache Man (Wasted)” kicks in. It’s up tempo, it’s catchy, and it uses that weird little rattle sound they tend to use for EVERYTHING. I can’t hate on an instrumental titled “Teenage Pregnancy” no matter how “Casio” it sounds. Another single, “Sick Of You” is pretty damn good. On the grading curve that is Cake’s discography it’s probably one of their top 4 or 5 tracks. It just works. I had to laugh at the start of “The Winter” because it sounds A LOT like how a random track by “The Killers” could and would start. I don’t know who that insults if anyone, but it’s sure as hell not what I was expecting here. The album closes out with “Italian Guy”, one of a handful of flat and soulless songs. This album is like the band took some xanax and hung out with a lap top in a small child’s bedroom. There is some difference and variety here, but it’s the bad kind.
THE VERDICT
(1991 – ) - Cake went from being funky with horns and repeating themselves all the time to being “oh so experimental” and dull. The lyrics and smugness of it all is lame. It’s like we’re being told that if we don’t like it then we don’t get it. I get it and its lame. There is probably enough tracks here to make an “Greatest Hits” EP and even that would get a bit boring after awhile. To me, this band is a novelty. The songs like “The Distance”, “Never There”, and “Short Skirt/Long Jacket” are fun songs to hear on the radio and at random times, but to actually sit down with a full album is too much. I would be remiss to not make the obvious joke about having your cake and eating it too. Musically there’s some skill going on, but everything else just rubs me the wrong way. I want to enjoy music, absorb it, rebel with it… not make “oh so witty” banter. While this six album listening experience wasn’t as bad as listening to the discography of Kings of Leon, it was pretty damn close. If you’ve never REALLY listened to Cake, like I mean REALLY listened to them… outside of their radio stuff… for the love of Jebus, run!
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