Monday, June 1, 2009

Review: Turbo Fruits' "Mama's Mad"

Posted by Adam Gold on Mon, Jun 1, 2009 at 2:49 PM

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  • Fuck yeah!
So, this past Friday I was getting my whistle wet over at the Gold Rush when, on a whim, I decided to mosey on down to The End to catch the Turbo Fruits--whom I had not yet seen in their current incarnation--featuring bassist Wez Traylor (MEEMAW, Kintaro) and drummer Zack Attack (Kintaro). I was blown away. I've always liked seeing this band for their frenetic energy and balls-out, cacophonous performances. But in it's current form, the heretofore unwieldy punk ensemble sounded tight, focused and out for blood. And most importantly--having stuck mostly to newer material I had not yet heard--they now have GREAT songs. Couple this with some knee-drops on the stage, drumsticks flying, Pete Townshend windmills and a cover of The Undertones' "Teenage Kicks" that made me feel like John Peel himself was smiling down upon us from heaven above, and I was watching what was the best performance from a local band that I've seen in a good while.

The show was so good that I walked away with a copy of their new 7-inch "Mama's Mad." It's one of those songs with hooks that are so infectious they seem to go by almost too quickly to properly revel in, compelling you to spin it over and over again. With its sing-along chorus over a surfy guitar line that is broken up by rollicking drum rolls, the tune strikes a perfect balance of the glam swagger and punk snottiness that are the band's greatest influences--brilliantly codified by the lyric "mama's mad 'cos I fried my brain," a lyric that is sure to win the hearts and minds of any 16-year-olds who are lucky enough to hear it. While the song is an obvious throwback to the '70s, in this current era in which the impressionable palates of kids are being hijacked by the histrionics of bands like My Chemical Romance or the All American FUCKING Rejects, it's hard to complain, as this band might lead the kids to The Undertones that much sooner.

Rating:

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(8.5/10)

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Comments (30)

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John Peel would smile and then laugh really hard at this band, man are you joking or what?

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Posted by Richard Peel on June 1, 2009 at 3:36 PM

Uh dude..."Teenage Kicks" was Peel's favorite single of all time. He claimed he would tear up everytime he spun it. The Fruits covered it really well. Get your shit together.

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Posted by Gold on June 1, 2009 at 3:41 PM

hahaha! adam gold just owned you richard peel! you suck

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Posted by focused tiger on June 1, 2009 at 6:23 PM

Dude the fact that you think this sounded tight,well that pretty much speaks for itself.Who cares what his favorite single was,if Slaughter or the fine young cannibals had covered it would that make them great in Peel's eyes too.
Take a minute and read what you typed.Who needs to get their shit together Gold?!?No wait a minute,I guess considering the bands you normally sing praise to this shit would be tight.

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Posted by Richard Peel on June 1, 2009 at 11:18 PM

flame wars

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Posted by Hackelope on June 2, 2009 at 12:49 AM

Well Richard, considering that Peel was instrumental in the development of the Fine Young Cannibals I assume that he would've likely enjoyed them covering "Teenage Kicks." Don't believe me? Check it out: http://blogcritics.org/culture/article/john-peel-rip/
I could also just save you the time and pull a quote: "...He [Peel] then promoted them on his show and they made it big, subsequently becoming the Fine Young Cannibals."

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Posted by Gold on June 2, 2009 at 8:45 AM

punk is dead

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Posted by the last kid on June 2, 2009 at 9:17 AM

Gold, they've got nothing on you on this one.

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Posted by Hearn on June 2, 2009 at 9:46 AM

"in this current era in which the impressionable palates of kids are being hijacked by the histrionics of bands like My Chemical Romance or the All American FUCKING Rejects, it's hard to complain, as this band might lead the kids to The Undertones that much sooner."
What a stupid, misguided statement.

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Posted by Anonymous on June 2, 2009 at 10:09 AM

Gold got teary-eyed just talking about John Peel. I saw it.

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Posted by Ashley on June 2, 2009 at 10:10 AM

Gold. Should be downright ashamed for liking a local band who made-up some good songs and played a sweet show. Next time you say something nice you think about that...your a real piece of shit sometimes.

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Posted by Buddy on June 2, 2009 at 4:38 PM

That's the whole point Gold.How can you speculate what Peel would have liked.He had his hands in everything that was progressive coming out of the U.K.,Europe and a lot of America at one point.Just because the band covered a song he liked doesn't mean anything.It's somewhat disrespectful to his legacy to say something like that.He liked bands with an original style which you even admit this band doesn't have in a round about way.So if you want to own the argument that Peel would have like this band for that reason go ahead because it's a really strange argument.

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Posted by Richard Peel on June 2, 2009 at 11:59 PM

No Dick, the point is that the band covered "Teenage Kicks" in a way that I felt captured the spirit of the song--a song that is closely associated to John Peel, hence evoking him in complimenting them on a job well done. To call that disrespectful to his legacy is a hyperbolic display of your own lack of reading comprehension--especially considering that you yourself decided to speak for Peel when claiming that he would "laugh really hard at this band."
Which is par for the course given how off base you are in your understanding of his criteria for which records he chose to spin. One of Peel's true gifts was how inclusive he was. Despite his status as the world's preeminent taste-maker I never got the impression that he was a pompous self-righteous gatekeeper, but rather an excitable zealot for artists able to capture the spirit of rock and roll. Give a serious listen to the Turbo Fruits track reviewed above and tell me that you couldn't picture it on a Festive 50 compilation.
Yes, Peel was a fan of originality (as displayed by the many outsider electronic groups he had on his show), however, he was also a huge pop fan. One band that he was rather zealous about was Teenage Fanclub. Good band, yes. Original, no. No band has ever hung from another bands' collective nutsack the way this band hung from Big Stars'. Peel was able to appreciate a good pop song when he heard one, it's a shame you can't. Also, were you even at this show? Feel free to have the last word.

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Posted by Gold on June 3, 2009 at 12:37 AM

this record is good. they have def progressed a lot this year.

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Posted by adam anyone on June 3, 2009 at 1:43 AM

You've been Gilded, Dick!

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Posted by d. patrick on June 3, 2009 at 11:22 AM

To Hearn: I've read stuff you've written on this blog, and all i can say is that you've got to be the biggest brown noser, a$$-kissing fellow i've seen here. I guess since the Cream seems to think (albeit incorrectly) that the Tits are a great band, you are now here to pat their backs, too. I'd like to hear you have an original thought and disagree with someone just once.
Perhaps, try biting that hand that feeds you, since you can't possibly blindly agree with all the posts you comment on...
Just some constructive criticism for someone who wants to be a real rocker.

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Posted by kiss, kiss on June 3, 2009 at 12:58 PM

You called me dick,that tis funny!Don't know about your analogy there buddy,didn't he have something to do with a lot of those bands before they achieved mainstream status?Sorry I questioned your "review",it was so insightful I think I will buy the record?!
It was really sarcasm when I said "Peel would've laughed at it",who knows what he would've done?But since you spend all day reading wikipedia and figuring that out then I suppose you're the expert on what John Peel would have liked.Maybe you can start recording bands and call it the Gold/Peel sessions since you know.

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Posted by Richard Peel on June 3, 2009 at 1:19 PM

nice attempt at covering your tracks richard peel. fail.

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Posted by kara on June 3, 2009 at 3:18 PM

Richard peel is a loser forever. His grandkids will all have F.A.S. now

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Posted by Buddy on June 3, 2009 at 4:44 PM

I thought it was actually pretty good "kara".Since Gold has all this insight about John Peel's personal taste he should just carry on the Peel sessions torch.But yeah to reiterate John Peel would have laughed at this stuff because it lacks any substance or style.Get yo stuff together homey and try and actually review the music!

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Posted by Richard Peel on June 3, 2009 at 5:39 PM

i bash people for making positive comments. i am a cunt. i hate myself. i wish i played in the tits or my, band _enter band name here_ , got as much attention as them.
......haha

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Posted by kiss, kiss on June 3, 2009 at 5:53 PM

Gee wiz you're really hard on yourself kiss kiss,you should go to the park or something and get some fresh air or maybe just enjoy the breeze.

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Posted by Richard Peel on June 3, 2009 at 7:12 PM

I almost forgot,Kara since you're the president of the Adam Gold fanclub do you think you could get him to autograph my Peel Session cassette tapes?

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Posted by Richard Peel on June 3, 2009 at 9:19 PM

To the 2nd kiss, kiss, hahahahahaha...
actually my band does get more coverage than the Tits. are you puzzled now?
I just cringe at reading the feel good fuzzy responses from sycophantic punk rock wannabes. I'm entitled to my opinion. But that just it, it's an opinion, and most people on this blog spout things as though they are matters of fact.

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Posted by the 1st kiss, kiss on June 4, 2009 at 7:30 AM

shit sandwich

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Posted by these comments stink like a on June 4, 2009 at 1:08 PM

I like these comments, because they show that the nashville band/fan axis is not some amorphous glob of conformity of view points. Life would be boring if everyone agreed on everything all the time. It just sucks that, when someone offers a differing opinion, the usual commenters gang up on him/her. then you get the cream's beloved bands offering up their opinions in support.
like they're in cahoots...not that they necessarily are, but to the neophyte, they seem to be. It all just seems disingenuous at times.

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Posted by hahahaha on June 4, 2009 at 2:02 PM

puzzled. lost. belittle you wouldn't even believe....

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Posted by kiss,kiss on June 4, 2009 at 2:39 PM

Well these writers and their buddies seem to live in a very small box "hahahaha".Your right because anyone who doesn't like exactly what they do is automatically labeled a "hater" or some type of idiot.Why else would this blog review the same bands and their shows over and over again?They only want to pander to a certain crowd to score points with each other.Someone said it's like gossip girl in another thread,it's just very entertaining to read the narrow viewpoints of writers like this.
Summary:this is good,this guy would of liked it if he was around,I know so because I read about other stuff that he liked,you're an idiot because you misspelled a word,you're just a hater because we love these guys and write about them all the time,you're just an idiot...ect..ect...
Don't most of these blogs go about like that?Though they are a very entertaining read,keep up the good work guys!!

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Posted by Richard Peel on June 4, 2009 at 4:17 PM

To kiss, kiss: If your band gets more press than The Tits (which, admittedly, wouldn't be that hard), then why do you feel the need to jab at Mr. Hearn anonymously? Tell us your true identity, sir; otherwise you appear to be just another (lying) cowardly blogger hiding behind a keyboard.
BTW, Hearn really does have a large amount of enthusiasm for local music. He's one of the most genuinely nice and forthright people I've ever met, and I'm sure he'd love to have an intelligent discourse with you regarding the local scene. Good luck with your anonymous (and definitely NOT fictional band).

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Posted by Christian on June 5, 2009 at 6:20 PM

John Peel would've totally loved the Turbo Fruits

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Posted by Anonymous on November 12, 2009 at 11:16 AM
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