Karate High School

Arcade Rock

Written by: PP on 02/04/2006 13:33:54

As a reviewer, every once in a while you'll come across an album that strikes you with sheer originality and makes you seriously doubt if the band members are fully sane or not. Karate High School's new album "Arcade Rock" had this exact effect on me, much like HORSE The Band did a few months back with "The Mechanical Hand".

And indeed, HORSE The Band is the first band that comes into your mind while listening to Karate High School. The band combines the usual hardcore guitars and breakdowns with melodic pop punkish hooks and 8/16bit nintendo-style keyboard effects to create a shocking but yet awe-inspiring sound, ranging from the quick, poppy riffs and mood-setting singing on "Good News And Bad News" through the 6-minute slow, acoustic ballad "Scenes Rushing By", all the way to the odd hardcore piece "Extra! Extra! (Hear All About It). One can only wonder how the band came up with some of these ideas, such as "Sweep The Leg". This song features completely off tune pianos (and I mean in a manner almost displeasing to your ears) and synth effects similar to the organs at the chruch, on top of the crunching hardcore guitars and the strange screams "I DON'T NEED A BODY BAG!" by their singer, who is able to switch his voice from high-toned, almost girly singing to the hardcore screams within seconds.

Much like HORSE The Band, Karate High School is a band you must not take seriously, for otherwise you'll lynch them for their idiotic lyrical content. For instance, "Good News And Bad News" is a song literally about the title, where the band spends the entire song discussing which type of news should be told first, finding more and more ridiculous excuses for which one is better. The band definitely belongs to the 'tongue-in-cheek' seriousness category, where they know that they are retarded and are aiming to show it off as much as possible. But most importantly, their songs are fun to listen to, and none of them leave you bored even for a second. "Arcade Rock", which cleverly describes their sound, will put you in a good mood on a rainy day, but don't expect it to catch onto any major mainstream media coverage.

6

Download: Good News And Bad News, Sweep The Leg
For the fans of: HORSE The Band
Listen: Purevolume, Myspace

Release date 21.03.2006
Evo Recordings

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