ARSONISTS GET ALL THE GIRLS Game Of Life - 2007 limited edition 2-CD
Format: CD Condition: New Year of Release: 2007 Cat. No.: 18364 Label: Century Media
Santa Cruz sextet Arsonists Get All the Girls embody the short attention span of an entire generation with their sophomore opus, 'The Game of Life', which hop-scotches incessantly from one musical style to another, giving listeners little chance to latch onto anything before squirming out of their tenuous grasp like so many slippery tadpoles.
Indeed, even listing all of the band's stylistic touchstones would be a futile exercise in itself, as Arsonists Get All the Girls essentially expound multiple-personality disorder as a way of life when it comes to their music. Not even the sanctity of individual songs are respected, and it's therefore not uncommon for tracks such as "Cuffed to Your Ankles" to shift abruptly from atonal, free-form death metal into mournful melodies and regimented clean riffs. Others careen wildly (but never sit down and stay awhile) into realms of lounge-jazz ("13 Year Old Ruby"), pure hardcore ("To Get Eaten by Rats"), and the avant-funk metal of Faith No More ("Save the Castle, Screw the Princess").
And, needless to say, the band's lyrics (generally consisting of Cookie Monster growls or enraged screaming) also tend to the absurd, and its only their clever use of unexpected synthesizer lines amid the general mayhem (see "Tourtasia" and "Claiming Middle Age a Decade Early," etc.) that makes them remotely original (earning contextual relevance alongside the Nintendo-core of fellow Californians Horse the Band).
But, ultimately, 'The Game of Life's main attraction is catering to the attention deficiencies of its intended target audience, and that hardly spells a god recipe for attracting a loyal following, or enjoying a lengthy career.
Century Media's 2007 edition includes a seven-track bonus disc,
~ Review by Eduardo Rivadavia, Rovi
TRACK LISTING:
CD 1:
1. 1 Business In The Front 1. 2 Save The Castle Screw The Princess 1. 3 Mantipede 1. 4 Cuffed To Your Ankles 1. 5 Shoeshine For Neptune 1. 6 To Get Eaten By The Rats 1. 7 Tourtasia 1. 8 Claiming Middle Age A Decade Early 1. 9 Taiwanese Troft Trouble 1. 10 13 Year Old Ruby 1. 11 Robando De Los Muertos 1. 12 So You Think You Know About The Game Of Life (Party In The Rear)
CD 2:
2. 1 At All Cost 2. 2 Business Suits And Combat Boots 2. 3 Shoeshine For Neptune 2. 4 Bleed The Filth 2. 5 Bludgeoned To Death 2. 6 Big Timber 2. 7 Angels Of Debauchery
