I've pretty much been listening to Hot Probs, the new record from Tea Cozies, non-stop over the past few days. Even after I finished writing my review of it, where I wrote:
After the first listen of Hot Probs, it sounds familiar. It’s full of pop tricks like handclaps and “oh oh ohs”, it borrows from surf pop (think The Beach Boys, Jan and Dean and Frankie and Annette), making for a great record that gets better as the weather gets warmer. It makes sense that the album was produced by Erik Blood, the Turn-Ons guitarist and producer who is a fan of Phil Spector’s production aesthetics and understands pop music as well as anyone in the northwest.
The album opens with “Boys at the Metro”, which has the jerky guitar opening from Imperial Teen’s “Baby” on top of a Gina Shock-like drum beat. It takes over a minute to get to the lyrics, which are “the universe is dead, it’s just a theater, hey fuck you Spielberg.” Even with the four-letter word directed at the famous director, it is one of the catchiest songs on a very catchy record.
“Like Luca Brasi” is arguably my favorite track on the record (track three, often the best track on any given album). It’s a story set in a bad dream about a trip swimming that, well, ends badly. It has my favorite verse on the album, which includes “I should have listened to my instincts, because I can’t swim for shit; tell mom and dad I can’t do the dishes, now I gotta sleep with the fishes.” It reminds me of the Sleater-Kinney song “Wilderness” with the dual-layered guitar parts, the “bad idea gets worse” storyline and the harmonies on “Like Luca Brasi” sound like Carrie Brownstein’s here. The Tea Cozies’ song is much sugary, of course, but the spirit from my absolute favorite band is transcendent.
Tonight is their CD release show at the High Dive. I'll surely be there, and you should too.
What else ya do you have planned? There's another great show at Chop Suey with Sleepy Eyes of Death and Weekend.
- Y La Bamba/PWRFL Power/Cap Lori/Spencer Moody, Cairo*
- Big Sur/Countrycide/The Lucky Suns, Jules Maes
- Tommy Simmons/Sunderlyn/Code Beebe, Nectar
- Viva La Villains/Berkeley Heights, High Dive {6pm}
- Basemint/Tea Cozies {album release}/Katharine Hepburn's Voice, High Dive {late}
- Mind Candy/The Plankton Beat/The Hickmans/Adarna, Funhouse
- Corky Siegel, Kirkland Performance Center*
- Kinski/Lozen/The Heavy Hearts, Sunset Tavern !
- Igor & Red Elvises, Tractor
- Orange Tulip Conspiracy/Sly Lothario/Squeak & Destroy/Master Musicians Of Bukkake, Comet
- Rev Theory/Divide The Day, El Corazon*
- Nichole Halleen & The Projects/Nearly Naked/Kissing Girls/Julia Massey & The Five Finger Discount, Showbox SoDo
- Berkeley Heights, High Dive {6pm}
- x12k/Mighty Tiger/The Beats Man/Hair Envelope, Cafe Racer
- Ghost/Six Organs Of Admittance, Crocodile
- Trolls Cottage/Diano Garcia, Neumo's
- Sleepy Eyes Of Death/Weekend/Constant Lovers, Chop Suey !