REVIEW: Love Kit, Who's Afraid Of The Radio Tower? (Ginger)
- Bill Holmes
Impossible to pigeonhole, difficult to forget; not a bad combination! Featuring titles like "Red Meat," "Spider On A Window," "You're My Food" and of course the two-for-one punch of "Dandelion / Victorian Motorhome," Chicagoland's Love Kit is back with perky, quirky pop tunes that are as odd as their titles.
"Red Meat," with its odd lyrics and Toad The Wet Sprocket tempo intact, opens the door for this wild ride through pop's inner recesses, but the following cut, "Bookmobile," sounds too fuzzed out to be from the same record. Then delicacy: the toy piano intro of "Champion Pony" is joined by some Beach Boy harmony chirps to bridge your way across to the next track. But that's "New Low," which is just pedestrian, alternative sludge (hey, maybe it was intentional?).
So four cuts in and you're still wondering what the hell is going on, but then "Tiger Beat Heaven" kicks your ass and you swear this is the best thing you've heard all year. Yikes!
Fortunately the batting average goes up shortly afterwards. "Dandelion" is a little stressful but is the perfect set up for the fuller "Victorian Motorhome." "Go There" creates a dreamy ambiance using guitar phasing, and "Dear Gaspara" mines '60s pop and psychedelia. "Spider On A Window" is stark by comparison -- acoustic six string and wah-wah bass guitar -- but conventionally melodic despite the setting. Ditto "Around The Bend," whose dual vocals and lightweight percussive thrust carry the song to its fade out vocal coda. For you uptempo folks, "Medium Crash" is Bo Diddley incarnate. In many spots, songs literally bleed into one another; there's a lot going on here besides the standard two guitar/bass/drum army.
Many comparisons can be made to the late great Let's Active, and this is perhaps no more evident than on the aforementioned "Tiger Beat Heaven," an urgent rocker just drenched in lo-fi glam. The vocals on the verses sound like they're shouted through a kazoo, but the chorus call-and-responses drag you right back in for the big finish. Come on radio, you have to play this!
Rick Sparks and Eddie Jemison are a solid guitar attack, and bassist Ellen Phillips locks down the bottom very well. All three sing, and the arrangements are diverse. Kudos also to drummer Tim Ford for providing wallop on even the softest of songs. Regular rock programmers will never get this, but Love Kit should be a slam dunk for college radio. For more information visit the label's website http://www.gingerrecords.com .
