Bizarre. This long player from Queensland’s THE ROCK HARDS is a blend of left wing music and comedy, but there isn’t a trace of insincerity about the musicianship.
Rather than a collection of silly songs, this album is a blend of rather dusty stand-up comedy, in the traditional mould – concerned with all the usual topics, such as the differences between the sexes, corruption, and the powers that be. If the material lacks humour, this is because the comedy is a foil, as stand-up frontman Peter Grose goes for the jugular – naming names and stating facts as the jokes suddenly run deliberately dry, leaving the finger well and truly pointed!
Just as frequent as the bursts of laughter come the uncomfortable ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ that signify the ‘close-to-the-knuckle’ attacks on our Heads of State, as the double knife edge of Grose’s humour hacks away at some of the most basic and glaringly obvious truths about ‘the system’ – nearly all of the atrocities we take for granted.
Grose’s motto: “It’s not what you play, it’s what you SAY” - stand-up gives The Rock Hards the extended license that is perhaps necessary when pointing the finger at specific targets in the name of comedy. But when it comes to the music, we are aware from the very beginning that there is creative talent at work. Brett Thompson’s skill on both guitars and the keys stands out. As does the tightened rhythm section that comes courtesy of Ian Simpson and Greg Baikaloff, as The Rock Hards make their musical point via merciless lampooning of the ‘serious’ musicians who are looked up to as anti-Establishment heroes.
‘Marshmallow Heart’ opens in style. Hollow beats, and double bass licks intersperse with bleeps and FX that brilliantly mark out the line between subliminal and silly, as our favourite political heroes are sampled weaving a familiar tapestry of faux-pas and bullshit. ‘Three Blind Mice’ indeed.
|
Grose finds an extra edge to his already strong Aussie twang with the help of his nasal passages, as he rhymes over the jam. It’s stupid, but skilful, and unlikely though it all sounds when written down, it works like a charm. This belching, gurning slice of mutilated electro comes armed with little breaks that rip the piss out of Bobby Gillespie amongst others, as the so-called rebels are made to carry some of the can.
Grose’s wicked sense of humour is at odds with an impressive burst of scratch DJ-ing, and this is followed up swiftly and unexpectedly by the sublime bossa-novas of ‘Waiting’ (for the shit to hit the fan), a no-holds-barred critique of masculine shortcomings, previously hidden behind a macho veneer. The guitar work is beautiful, and the sentiments accurately expressed, though there’s still room for a smile at the lyrics as the heartstrings are touched upon.
Elsewhere, we have the psyched out progressive rock of ‘Premature Ejaculator’, a wicked lampooning of the ‘so-sexy’ sheen of (glam and associated) rock postures, and the looping beats and guitar hybrid funk of ‘We’re Fucked’ – an anti- global multinational and governmental skit about ‘justified atrocity’. Or what about the microcosmic-macrocosmic, and very jaunty ‘It’s the Vibe’.
Make of it what you will, ladies and gentlemen, make of it what you will. I thought it was pretty funny, musically sound, and very Australian.
http://www.petergrosecomedy.com
http://www.petergrose.com
|
