Who would have thought that an act that made its name at the turn of the millennium with a brace of novelty hits would still be going 18 after they formed, and what’s more, delivering their 10th studio album? No doubt their relentless touring – not to mention their reputation for being an energetic and entertaining live act – has been key to their longevity, and to maintaining a fan-base long after their fifteen minutes of fame.
So what’s this? A concept album? What’s the big idea? Well, the big idea is, apparently, to revel in postmodern irony and the death of originality: ‘The concept of the “human zoo” has existed in art and literature for centuries, thus Electric Six recognizes and accepts it is not breaking new conceptual ground by naming its tenth studio album Human Zoo. It recognizes and accepts that old ground is being broken. Like teeth.’
As a band who’ve never been to troubled by keeping things tasteful, it should come as no surprise to find what they describe as ‘the feel good necrophilia anthem of the summer’ (‘Alone With Your Body’) and some awful parodic hip-hop (‘“(Who The Hell Just) Call My Phone”).
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With song titles like ‘It’s Horseshit!’, ‘I Need a Restaurant’ and ‘I’m the Devil’, it’s another set of irreverent songs that leap and bound from one style to another. There’s plenty of energetic rock tunes with a superabundance of grunt and grind, pressed up close to funky white electro soul, jazz pop, disco and Motown. Needless to say, it’s a bit hit and miss, and how enjoyable it is depends on how much you enjoy your cliches and stylistic pastiches rolled in a pseudo-ironic retro suits. Mostly, it feels that while Electric Six are still intent on being a novelty act, the novelty’s worn rather thin.
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