Rising like the Kream of the krap…
There is no doubting that Quit Your Day Job are a band of musical fruit loops, who indulge in the inanely amusing type of songs that may have you wondering whether they are a few grains of sand short of a beach, when in fact they are the purveyors of simple and catchy electro-rock that will have you thinking about those 'whip it' boys Devo.
Their previous album, 'Sweden We’ve Got A Problem' had me left opened mouthed and scratching my shaved head when I reviewed it a couple of years ago. So I had an idea of what was to come from the band that class themselves as Retard Rock. The first song is a total surprise with the addition of rap vocals from R.A.The Rugged Man, but coming in just under a minute it's not long before the next song, 'Crime Is Ahead of Technology' blasts in with a mixture of punk riffs and repetitive lyrics that we have come used to. 'Bodypoppers' is a mix of Daft Punks and Outkast, whereas we are told to go into work and punch our boss in the face with the wonderfully titled and literal song, 'Beat The Boss'. A song that is liable to get you into trouble with more than just your Human Resources department, I'd wager...
'Frank Suicide' is a short shot of punk with deviously dynamic riffs, whereas 'Medieval Monsters...' has that B-Movie lyrics, and merges together electro with a hint of rockabilly, which could also be said of the simple ditty 'Bob Dallas' which is a bit like The Damned and Misfits, and the more amusing, 'Danger! Fire Kills Children', which starts off with, "Ouch! It burns! // Ouch! It Burns!" and along with the title appears to be the only lyrics whilst sounding a bit like Electric Six.
There are the unexpected blasts of a saxophone in 'Police Are Coming' which is a fusion of electro-jazz pop rock, er, interesting. Title track 'Tools For Fools' sounds like a great anthem rock song that some German dance act has decided to remix, so I'll let you draw your own conclusions as to what it sounds like. 'Kream Of The Krap' is a little mix of indie with the added juvenile lyrics of, "I'm the kream of the krap // The diamond of the dung!" as well as, "One for the money // Two for the show // Three to get ready so go Krap go!"
Of course sometimes you wonder whether Quit Your Day Job get their ideas whilst totally inebriated like in, 'Thank You For Coming' which is basically someone thanking everyone for coming to their birthday party over some guitars and drums, and er, party noises. The last song, 'Execute The Prankster' had an overriding keyboard melody over the usual sparse lyrics which pretty much sums up the album.
Quit Your Day Job are a band that have musical skills, however it's very easy to get bored of the short songs and basic lyrics, even with totally loopy titles and song content - which are often the same thing - they can come across as more of a flash in the pan band that may only seem to be great after indulging in illegal substances! If I'm completely honest then if you want a good example of QYDJ then I would get their previous album first as it is a little more guitar based, and a little more amusing, as 'Tools For Fools' is a bit of a disappointment. Regressing, rather than progressing may once again have them asking if they have a problem…