The Go! Team Albums (2)
What The Critics Say
The Go! Team burst onto the indie scene a couple years ago like the proverbial breath of fresh air. Their music, built on samples of schoolyard chants and TV theme rockers, made most everything else sound gray and a little timid in comparison. Thunder, Lightning, Strike, their debut album, was a brilliant record and Proof of Youth can't help but suffer when stacked up against it. Indeed, it might take a spin or two before you can shake the feeling that you're listening to outtakes from Thunder, Lightning, Strike, but once you do, the album reveals itself to be another, though slightly lesser, stroke of greatness. Rather that relying heavily on samples this time out, bandleader Ian Parton goes with a live band approach with samples blended in. It results in a slightly more organic sound, but one that's still recognizably the Go! Team. Meaning that the master tapes were dragged behind a car for a couple of miles, then dipped in wool, and left out to melt in the hot August sun. The resulting tinny and muddy mess may be enough to give audiophiles the hives, but to anyone else it's an exciting mess that fairly explodes out of the speakers in a hissy rush of sound. The drums pound, the horns blare, the guitars wail and clatter, the vocals shout to be heard; it's a whirling fun house of music. Which would be enough to recommend the album, but the songs themselves are strong and equally as impressive. "Grip Like a Vice," which features beamed-in-from-the-early-'80s raps from female pioneers Lisa Lee of Cosmic Force and Sha Rock from Funky 4 + 1, is the equal of anything on Thunder; "Doing It Right" has lovely verses sung by guitarist Kaori Tsuchida to match the instantly hooky chorus; "I Never Needed It Now So Much" is a indie pop ballad sung sweetly by Elisabeth Esselink (also known as Solex); and "Patricia's Moving Picture" shows a sensitive and melodic side the group would be wise to investigate in the future. Taking the place of the samples on Proof of Youth are many guest appearances. Along with Solex's appearance, Marina from Bonde do Rolê sings on the stomping "Titanic Vandalism," two rap crews from opposite ends of the age spectrum (daycare cuties the Rappers Delight Club and real old-school jump-roping rappers the Double Dutch Divas) are on board for "Universal Speech," and Chuck D of Public Enemy raps on "Flashlight Fight." Only the latter guest spot feels like a gimmick. Chuck D's rap isn't as bad as his "Kool Thing" misadventure, but it sounds wildly out of place next to Ninja's exhortations and the old-school lightheartedness that prevails elsewhere. No doubt the idea of working with one of their heroes was a thrill for the band, but the album would have been better off without the song. One misstep isn't enough to ruin things, though, and if you can forgive them for basically making the same album again, Proof of Youth is a pretty spectacular continuation of some of the most exciting, innovative sounds around. Next time they'll have to stretch some, but for now the Go! Team is doing it right. ~ Tim Sendra, All Music Guide
'Thunder, Lightning, Strike'
Release Date 9/13/2004
Tracks 11
Label Memphis Industries
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
The Go! Team earn their exclamation point. Their debut album, Thunder, Lightning, Strike, is a refreshing blast of Day-Glo bubble-dance-pop that could crack a smile on even the most frozen of faces. The sound of the record is a slap in the face to audio purists; it sounds like it was recorded on a truck stop-quality cassette in a very damp, crowded basement. The feel of the record is like a slap on the arse of complacent music-makers everywhere. A wake-up call to arms; a "can you top this?" The group whips up a clattering, exhilarating collage of Northern soul horns meshed with sampledelic beats, plangent harmonica, lyrical piano melodies that bring Martin Duffy's work with Felt to mind (especially on "Feelgood By Numbers"), hard-charging '70s police drama funk, old-school hip-hop, and sincere indie rock. Everyone from Marley Marl to Sonic Youth is roped in to be borrowed from. It's all thrown together with a glorious sense of what works and what doesn't. There isn't a single misstep on the record and it is hard to pick favorites because every song is so blindingly good. Still, if pressed, one might pick "Ladyflash" because it encapsulates everything that is brilliant about the band, from the "Tighten Up" samples to the wonderful vocals (by the one-woman wrecking crew Ninja) that are equal parts playground hip-hop crossed with a sassy girl group to the melody to the two drummers beating the holy crap out of their kits. Find a better song than this from 2004 and you are lying. Well, maybe "Huddle Formation," a more straightforward song with the same double dutch vocals, only this time married to bracing New Order playing the hits of Phil Spector in a wind tunnel musical backing. But again any song would do, the banjo-driven epic ballad "Everyone's a V.I.P. to Someone," the funkier than Ike & Tina "Bottle Rocket," the theme to the best day of your life "Friendship Update." It's pin the tail on the donkey where everywhere you stick the pin gets you a prize. The Go! Team is widescreen in a pan-and-scan world, a sparkling rejoinder to purists and spoilsports everywhere and more fun than recess on the last day of school. Cinematic, fantastic, and essential to all who want their music larger than life and rambunctious, Thunder, Lightning, Strike is the kind of record that makes you glad to be alive. What could be better than that? ~ Tim Sendra, All Music Guide
