Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 06/07/2005
Their fanatical cadre will love that
Charge!! ends
the Aquabats' nearly six-year album drought. But the combo's hiatus has also refocused its musical and ideological attack. Intact are the
pop references, zany in-jokes, and
Batman villain fetishism. And the album has more exclamation points per syllable than the average lad's mag cover. (One song is simply called
"Waterslides!") But
Charge!! is much more rewarding musically. It doesn't loiter awkwardly between
punk,
pop,
ska, and broad humor -- it keeps the pressure on with a catchy guitar- and keyboard-driven blend of anthemic choruses and appropriately squawky elements. Enjoyment of
the Aquabats will still depend on your tolerance for gimmickry. But
Charge!! has hooks and its eyes on the prize. A lot of guys have written songs about teenage dirtbags and losers getting lucky. But their subtext is usually a whiny one, like they know it's all a fantasy. Not
the Aquabats.
"Nerd Alert!" is not a wistful sigh but a proud call to arms.
MC Bat Commander reclaims the title cliché over a kicky cross of
Nerf Herder and
Sparks (with sly references to the
Revenge of the Nerds soundtrack), and lyrics like "The revolution has begun/So raise your fist and take a stand/With your super cool wristbands!" align
"Alert!" with the 21st century's tech- and gaming-heavy "geek cool" movement.
"Look at Me (I'm a Winner)!" is a shiny plastic
Weezer/
Cheap Trick romp; it has some terrific lyrical imagery in the line "Four radios blastin' classic
rock/And they're pointing at you!" Meanwhile,
"Meltdown!," "Fashion Zombies!," and
"Plastic Lips!" are concise slices of
new wave-inspired
pop that retain that particular
Aquabatian flair for the totally wiggy. Older fans might miss the horn sections or heightened theatrics. But
Charge!! does geekdom proud. It proves it's possible to put "hilarious," "solid songwriting," and "mechanical ape" in the same sentence.
~Johnny Loftus, All Music Guide
;)
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