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Artist
Karate Kitchen
4+ albums
about
Whats Up! Magazine Review by Pete Mack Karate Kitchen play a mix of spindly post-punk and the style of indie-rock ascendent in the early to mid-90s. (I’m thinking The Breeders, The Wrens’ melodic sprawl and the Pixies of course.) But there’s very little blatant borrowing here. These guys have been playing music in various bands for a while now. It sounds like they’ve absorbed a lot, taken it in and brought out something that sounds organic. The influences are jumping off points, not crutches. And they’ve written some songs that are catchy as crabs. (That’s complimentary.) The songs are punchy and layered with hooks. The way vocalist Joe Metzger sings “Obtuse Goose” ‘s refrain of “Nobody comes around anymore/ Yeahheahh” turns what sounds like mid-20’s ennui into a rallying cry (or a merit badge) for disaffected American youth everywhere. Similarly, the chorus to “Fernando” sports defeat casually, Metzger singing “22 and 0” over and over. The songs aren’t paint-by-numbers indie rock, but abound with unexpected nooks and crannies. “Instrumental” starts with guitars tip-toeing down a music-box fragile melody and moves into a chorus of disembodied “oohs” and “ahhs.” “Sharks and Bees” could be a satire of modern humanity’s fear of the natural world. Or maybe it’s about someone with a genuine fear of sharks and bees. Either way some of these songs stick like gum to the bottom of a desk. The kind you’re happy to absent-mindedly pick at all day. Oct. 2007 User-contributed text is
