Review Summary: This synth-laden, glitchy-pop effort is well worth a few spins in your walkman.
This review is long overdue. When I first heard of Does It Offend You, Yeah? I thought, "What the hell happened to normal band names?" But, apparently when the band decided to load some music onto Myspace for the first time, they needed a name. They opted to use the first thing they heard when they turned the television on. What they heard was a quote from the UK show "the Office," with Ricky Gervais' character asking, "Does it offend you, yeah? My drinking?" Quite a humorous little back-story, eh?
"You Have No Idea What You're Getting Yourself Into" is the band's first (official) foray into the world of music, and what a wild ride it is. Quite a few songs almost sound like the keyboard lines are ripped straight from cheesy monster movies. Classified most easily as electronica, they blend 1 part indie rock; 2 parts dance; 1 part new wave; and just a dash of metal for an interestingly catchy recipe that is sure to become a hit at the next potluck. From the synth-laden opener Battle Royale to album closer Epic Last Song, they manage to provide the listener with a more-than-filling serving of glitchy-synth-electro-pop.
The energy on this album is palpable. You can tell that the band members are having a blast with this record. "Attack of the 60ft Lesbian Octopus" is a really good example of this, sounding vaguely like surf rock. The song starts off with some sketchy feedback, and then the snare kicks in. The synths let out a quivering wail, increasing in pitch until there is an explosion of sound as the drums kick into full gear and the bass provides a simple, energetic groove. The keyboards let everyone know of the 60's monster flick soundtrack roots here, and are not ashamed to do so.
These guys also provide a few slower, "poppier" tracks just to let you kick back and breath, but take nothing away from the catchiness. "Dawn of the Dead" and "Being Bad Feels Pretty Good" are perfect examples. The energy levels are a bit toned down, but the catchy, sing-along nature they bring to the table more than make up for that. The former even has a bit of a steel drum to the chorus, which is a nice little addition and brings something new to the table.
I enjoy this album immensely, but I feel like a lot of the songs sound similar if you listen to the album for an extended period of time. The formula doesn't seem to change much from song to song. And for some reason, I always seem to skip over "Doomed Now". It escapes me whether this is because it is filler, or if I'm just anxious to get onto the rest of the album. The band accomplishes the short songs well, but some of the longer ones like "Weird Science" seem to drag on.
Overall, this is a fun album to listen to, and it feels like it could hit a wide range of music tastes across all genres. This is a solid effort by these newcomers and we should all look forward to their next album, hopefully a more refined, diverse effort.
Recommended Listens
With a Heavy Heart (I regret to inform you)
We Are Rockstars
Attack of the 60ft Lesbian Octopus
Being Bad Feels Pretty Good
