By Jimmy “Explosive Diarrhea” B.
After college, unless you were lucky enough to be born a
Kennedy or a Bush, we graduated to reality—huge debts, unemployment, or if lucky,
a life of work, taxes, the real possibility of never being able to retire, and
other assorted shit. At some point I realized two things. First, most people
are only allowed moments of joy, 80 percent of life sucks. Second, if you’re
not angry, you’re not paying attention. Kingdom of Dali is paying attention.
Their song “Bitter” is a good summary of adult life. Here are the lyrics in
their entirety:
Living that life that life my friend\ With a
pretty little wife behind that picket fence\ A house, a car, kids in the
yard\ It’s all about them things that they peddle so hard\ Living that life
that life my friend\ With a pretty little wife behind that picket fence\ Living
the job that life my friend\ All them crappy little things you do to pay the
rent\ Fat cat smiles as you buy it again\ While you’re doing crazy thing to help
you forget\ Hand you a dream, A walk across the sky\ Just a sign over head when
you die\ Living the dream that dream my friend\ Like a hamster in a cage you
run till you’re spent\ Hump your ass over again\ Just a life well wasted, yea
that’s what I said\ Living the dream that dream my friend\ The shiny expensive
one you’ll never get\ But I’m not bitter.
The last line, “But, I’m not bitter,” is the important part. There are two ways of looking at this sentiment. There is the “if life hands you lemons, make lemonade” sentiment. This is not necessarily one I agree with, but I see the rationale of it. Perhaps the lack of bitterness comes from an altered version of the cliché that I like better: “When life hands you lemons, don’t make lemonade, throw those little yellow fuckers.” You might get lucky and hit something or someone who is contributing to your misery. Remember my friends, we make our own history. That might mean trying to create a better future, or it may mean doing something creative to help the rest of us swim the sea of poo known as adulthood, like recording an album of adult angst rock.
What is adult angst rock? I’m not entirely certain, but I do know that teenagers aren’t the only ones who feel angry and powerless. Many of the songs on the album have lyrics about failure, and disappointment. There are songs about broken relationships, fucked up families, and crappy employment. When I think of angst rock, I think of metal, punk, or blues.
Stylistically, KOD is a little hard to nail down. Upon my first
listen I was set to label them as blues rock, primarily because Greg Malarkey’s
rough, whiskey-drenched vocal style reminds me of John Wesley Myers of the
Black Diamond Heavies. But this is too simple; there are subtleties in the
songs. The cadence and feel is often bluesy, but Jon Boyd, the guitar player doesn’t
always follow the groove set up by the rhythm section. On the song “Richard’s
Vacation,” which is a sort of boogie-woogie track, Boyd follows the script by
playing guitar licks that could have been lifted from Brian Setzer. There are
no surprises; it is just a simple frolicking rock-and-roll song. But, then the
next track, “Empty Minds,” starts out sounding like a blues song complete with
a very bluesy sounding harmonica. But Boyd starts fucking with us by playing
jazzy licks. It is this contradiction that makes “Empty Minds” one of my
favorite tracks on the album.
KOD has thrown together a potpourri of original tunes, some
golden, some not. In addition to “Empty Minds” I also really like “Smiles,” and
“Family.” I normally hate songs about sex or courtship, but “Smiles” is an
interesting tune. Everything about it is understated including the lyrics. The
song is clearly about sexual adventure, but this is only hinted at. This song
is a showcase for Boyd’s guitar work. The guitar sets the mood; it is flashy
but does not settle into over-the-top shredding. It feels like the vocals and
lyrics are only there to provide Boyd a platform for his rock, jazz, and blues
riffs. Everything about the song “Family” is over-the-top and in your face.
There is very little musicianship on display, except for some exceptional kazoo
playing. It is the humor of this tune that caught my attention. Here are the
lyrics for your reading pleasure:
My sister finds
boyfriends on the Internet\ My nephew is in jail\ My Niece lives with a douche
bag\ My Daddy is going to hell\ My family’s all fucked up\ My family’s all
fucked up\ This much is true\ My family’s all fucked up\ But I am too\ Another
sister lives in the hills over Phoenix\ She dinks around all day\ Her husband
survives on pain meds\ Just to make her go away\ My family’s all fucked up;\ This
much is true\ My family’s all fucked up;\ And so are you \And that’s why I love
you
By now you have probably noticed
that I like Kingdom of Dali. I like their honesty, their humor, and the way
they genre bust. But, as I mentioned before, there are weaknesses. I really
dislike the song, “Stepping Out.” This one feels like filler material to me.
Musically, and lyrically, there is very little to like about this song. It is
oversimplified, and well, silly. Also the production of the album, while better
than most eighties metal, misses the mark. It isn’t so bad that you can’t make
out the lyrics, or the notes, but it is dull, and some subtleties may have been
lost.
I started this review with a walk
down memory lane. How can a band that writes lyrics about the disappointments
of life make me think of college, a time of hope and carelessness? The answer
is pretty simple. There was a really good band that played bars in the little
piece of the Inner Mountain West I once called home. They could play anything
from Buddy Guy to Joe Walsh and The Eagles covers. They were fantastic, and
they loved playing music. Greg Malarkey’s vocals are very similar to those of
the bar band from my reckless youth.
I tickled my taint for 7.25 minutes.
For more information about the band
or samples, go to their website here: http://www.kingdomofdali.com/
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