Mustang

Album review

In their early days, Electric Six albums were full-on party records that delivered massive dance rock bombastic enough to cut loose to, but serious enough that they didn't feel like a joke. As time has gone on, what started as a simple house party has evolved into an anything-goes bacchanal, morphing into something darker and more unhinged on their 10th album, Mustang. While the album shows a return to the more driving rock sound the band made a name for themselves with, at this point even their excess is in excess. With songs like "Late Night Obama Food" and "Jessica Dresses Like a Dragon," irreverence only scratches the surface of the weird world the Electric Six have set up shop in. The thing is, the band pulls off this kind of strangeness with such confidence that it feels somehow normal. When you press play on Mustang you're stepping into the band's domain, and once you're in there playing by their rules, no matter how inscrutable they are, it feels completely natural. Ten albums deep, you either get what Electric Six are doing or you don't, so if the first nine albums weren't enough to convince you that their brand of absurdist rock was for you, Mustang isn't likely to change anything. If, however, you've given yourself over to the pleasures of Electric Six, this is an album that will affirm that your choice to follow the band's descent into dance rock madness was a sound one.
© Gregory Heaney /TiVo