keepers 4
keeper avg .333
"January: The One With Kid"****, the start of the third Local H studio album with second drummer Brian St. Clair, surprisingly begins in the mode of cinematic western via Bon Jovi. "February: Michelle Again", on the other hand returns to Lucas' comfort zone, specifically ripping off Nirvana, however catchy the result usually is. After focusing on the girl who done him wrong, on "March: BMW Man"**** and "April: White Belt Boys"**** Lucas extends the hate-fest to her future suitors, the former similar to "All The Kids Are Right", a pop formula he excels at, the latter a funky blaxploitation riff turned head-banger. "May: The Summer Of Boats" starts off country before sinking under arena-bombast in its boring Foo Fighters midsection. "September: Simple Pleas" starts similarly as a relatively subtle alternative ballad before suffering the same fate. While the Nirvana comparison continues to arise throughout the album, "August: Jesus Christ Did You See The Size Of That Sperm Whale" is punchy, hooky (like the hilarious "unghhhh" that starts verse 2), and while mostly atonal at least it's short. The appropriately mechanistic "October: Machine Shed Wrestling"**** also exceeds expectations, though it could use another hook or two to temper its monotony. The lengthy closer "December: Hand To Mouth" again combines spacious atmosphere with worthy hooks, though when not much happens after the initial hook, 8:49 is obviously excessive.
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