Lambrini Girls
Who Let the Dogs Out?
I’ve been holding off on reviewing this record because I’ve been thinking about it a lot the past couple months. There’s a lot of buzz around this band right now and rightfully so. Their music has the best elements of punk rock: it’s socially and politically conscious and has a sense of urgency to it. It’s also confrontational and has guts, which I love. People love comparisons, and why not? Why not try and define something to see if it sparks interest? Lambrini Girls’ music has been described a lot of different ways, but if you ask me, it sound like Death From Above 1979 and CRASS. If that doesn’t excite you, you should get your head checked. BUT, their songs have been accused of having elementary-level lyrics: too on-the-nose. (Yes, CREEM, I read you as well.) Sure, but that isn’t a bad thing, right? Isn’t punk rock like that?
I can’t help but contrast them to another punk band I tried getting into recently called Dead Pioneers. The music is great. The lyrics are about social and political issues, and very on-the-nose, but it’s also unlistenable. A lot of that has to do with the approach. Dead Pioneers is fronted by someone who seems to lavish the attention, is preachy, and is delivering the words like a lecture. They love the sound of their own voice. It’s exhausting. Lambrini Girls singer Phoebe Lunny, on the other hand, gets to the point and gets on with it. Her vocals are cool as hell. Plus, these ladies seem to have a sense of humor. My point is, Lambrini Girls sound like they’d be a fun hang.
Who Let The Dogs Out is a fun hang. I think in my old age, I’ve gotten smarter about these kinds of albums and know to give myself time between listens. It’s worked. Every revisit feels like a party that’s about to break out into a fight. It’s cool stuff.
On the day Lambrini Girls played my town, I was at the Bob Mould/J Robbins show. Do I regret not going to the Lambrini Girls show? No. Do I wish I could have gone to both? Yes. You may not be ready for this, but on their debut, Lambrini Girls have delivered a smart, fun, and outstanding album that undoubtedly will be a top ten of the year.
Get it here.
Photo by Picadilly Records
