Flippin, gosh darn great, mother truckers!
It's no big secret that I am a big Bowling For Soup fan, however as a fan sometimes we are the hardest to please. For me Bowling For Soup's albums have got better and better each time, and it is fair to say that 'The Great Burrito Extortion Case' starts off where 2004's 'Hangover You Don't Deserve' finished.
We have the 'big single' in 'High School Never Ends' which ticks all of the boxes that an obvious single should – it's catchy-as-hell, it's funny, it's good and has a great video! Just as '1985' did last time around, and 'Girl, All The Bad Guys Want', and 'The Bitch Song' before that, it has already got a lot of MTV airplay. First song, 'Epiphany' is a great album opener and could well be a single. It covers the usual boy loses girl story. 'Val Kilmer' starts off with an acoustic guitar, and explains all about the comparisons from life to movies – which in itself is amusing, as Jaret ponders his, concluding that his life movie would be, "Less Caddyshack, more Breakfast At Tiffany's..." and "Less Raising Arizona, more Steel Magnolias...", and then of course there is their individual feelings towards Mr Kilmer...
If a song should ever sum up a band totally and utterly, then it would be, 'I'm Gay'. Aside from being fast-paced pop/punk that will get in your head, the song content is all about being happy, and how as Jaret sings, "It sells records when your sad these days// It's super cool to be mad these days // I think rock 'n' roll is really funny when it's serious!". And of course, I have to also wonder whether this will turn into a Gay anthem, and look forward to the gig I will be attending in Bristol, to hear a room full of adolescent guys singing, "I'm Gay!" at the top of their voices! Jaret Reddick is a comic genius!
Things slow down for 'Why Don't I Miss You' with the acoustic ballad of the first verse that shows that there is some progression here. 'A Friendly Goodbye' is classic BFS with chugging guitars and one of the best choruses around, "Ain' that a Bee with an itch // Ain't that a mother trucker // You can go to H, E, double hockey sticks and F yourself! // 'Cause I'm flippin, gosh darn // Sick of all the F words you put me through // So F-U..."
'Love Sick Stomach Ache' is another of those songs that shows that they have moved slightly on, but still have those strange and funny choruses that we expect. It also appears that they all have a go at singing on this one! There are big riffs which also go into the familiar chugging guitars, on 'Much More Beautiful Person', with Jaret's vocals being slightly deeper on this. We speed up to the high-octane pop/punk with 'Friends Like You' that has cheerleader chants in the chorus, and hooks galore.
'When We Die' is a slow gentle number, and you almost forget who you are listening to with the heart-felt lyrics, and orchestral breaks. It's a little more like Simple Plan. However, we get back right on track with '99 Biker Friends', even from the first few lines of, "Such a big man, such a little chick // I think it all goes back to your tiny... // pick-up truck in the driveway.." you know what you are getting, however the surprise is that the song is about getting revenge on a big guy beating up a small girl, albeit with BFS's usual comedic approach to a serious subject. They suggest getting Bruce Lee and Walker, Texas Ranger before saying, "I've got 99 Biker friends // that are gonna kick your ass!" And we are right behind them.
'Don't Let It Be Love' is classic BFS before we have another of the slow tracks in 'If You Come Back To Me' which sees us out, and I'm still wondering how Harry Potter ever got a mention.... My only disappointment with this album is that lack of the band's song, 'Belgium', which somehow always seems to appear on each of their studio albums! It is however their best live song, as it's the one where they decide to play other people's songs in the middle.
So to conclude 'The Great Burrito Extortion Case' is a gentle progression from their last album, however where most of BFS's songs are made up of Chris's chugging guitars, and a melody that is provided by Jaret's vocals, this time around the music is what has grown. Chris is now throwing in big riffs and melodies, whilst Gary's drumming now has an abundance of fills, where previously (albeit a couple of albums ago) there was the tendency for too many AC/DC beats, if you know what I mean, and Erik seems to thrash his bass around like it's a weapon.
If you've not been a BFS fan before then there is probably nothing here that will convert you, however if you are a fan, then you are going to smile and laugh as hard as your nipples!