REVIEW: Mojo Nixon and the Toadliquors, !Sock Ray Blue! (Shanachie)
- Jon Steltenpohl
When you've been immortalized by the Dead Milkmen, made your claim to fame by calling for the death of Don Henley and impregnating Debbie Gibson, and been named Honorary Captain of the 1998 Olympic Luge Team, there isn't much else to aim for. So, Mojo has released a gen-u-ine retrospective of Mr. Sock Ray Blue's Texas Prison Field Recordings Vol. 3. At least, that's what the album cover and the liner notes tell you.
In reality, it's just the same old Mojo. Honky tonk and redneck music is in full swing, and the lyrics are as acerbic as ever. Subtlety has never been Mojo's forte, and he isn't about to let a single joke pass over your head on this album. Whether it's "Drunk Divorced Floozie (The Ballad of Diana Spencer)" or "I Don't Want No Cybersex", Mojo gives you the world as he see it through his whiskey blurred eyes. "She died in the backseat / Unzipping Dodi's pants," explains Mojo, "A buncha non-working rich pigs / So camera shy / They got drunk, drove fast, and proceeded to die."
As if one famous blonde's death wasn't enough, check out the choice words in "Orenthal James". "Orenthal James killed his bimbo X-wife," states Mojo. Yes, in the immortal words of Mojo, "Orenthal James was a mighty bad man." It's not exactly "Bad Bad Leroy Brown", but at least the song is fun to listen to. Yes, no matter whether Mojo is dogging the "Rock n Roll Hall of Lame" or Disney ("watch a topless Pocahontas and hear the people sing"), the music is rollicking.
"When did I become my Dad?" is the best song on the album. It's just Mojo singing solo with his acoustic guitar doing a mournful, no depression riff. No screaming or over the top lyrics. It's funny without being outrageous, and kind of makes you wonder what Mojo could do if he didn't seem to be hell bent on trying to make most of his lyrics go over the top. If Mojo would drop his schtick and write depressing, love sick lyrics, he'd probably be hailed some sort of genius. But just like Jim Carrey being snubbed at the academy awards, Mojo Nixon has no chance in hell of ever being taken seriously.
As it is, this Mojo album is pretty much the same as every other Mojo album with the exception that the music on this one is probably the tightest of any of his albums. There's stuff as sick as old classics like "She's Vibrator Dependent", but nothing quiet as funny. The soundtrack to the video game "Redneck Rampage" is included as is a tribute to the late Country Dick Montana of the Beat Farmers. Probably, the funniest part of the album is the bogus liner notes by John Swenson.
Of course, saying that the liner notes are the funniest part of a comedy album isn't saying much. You'll get your chuckles, but don't expect to fall out of your chair. Fortunately, Mojo Nixon and the Toadliquors play honky tonk and rockabilly well enough that you'll have fun just listening.
