I hate the Distillers a lot less than I'd like to proclaim.....or do I? I'll admit, on each of the Distillers' previous works, I could find a song or two that was actually rather enjoyable. Amongst the array of other punk revivalist bands, the Distillers manage to stand above a good portion of those other bands who really have nothing going for them at all. On top of that, Brody broke Tim Armstrong's heart or something like that, how can I not have a little spare love to send her way? At least her taste in bands to pick sexual partners from has improved.
Sadly, her music really hasn't made any leaps and bounds, though. There is some noticable growth and improvement, but nothing to really make the band notable yet. Not to insult the record right off the bat, but I could probably have reviewed Coral Fang without even having listened to it. In fact, how do you know I actually did listen to it? I might not have, and you're reading this anyways. You must really want to have sex with me. Alright, maybe my review wouldn't be as frighteningly positive as it's going to be if it ran completely on my assumptions and predictions, but it'd be fairly close.
Maybe I should get this out of the way for people who don't already know. Brody Armstrong sounds like Courtney Love and is probably comparable to her in more ways than one. You'll come across a myriad of Distillers fanboys/girls who will argue to the death that Brody doesn't sound like Courtney Love, but she does, and that's that. The rest of the band emit a rather typical nu-punk sound in the vein of *shock* Rancid's punkier moments. "How can someone find anything redeeming in that mess?", you might ask. Well, surprisingly, Brody, at times, is somewhat decent at writing a pop song.
The first track off of Coral Fang and the album's first single, "Drain the Blood" is probably the best thing the Distillers have ever put out. Not to suggest there is much competition in that department, seeing as how the songs I found enjoyable in the past which I mentioned earlier, were still nothing special. The opening guitar riff is rather typical, but equally charming. From the beginning, I could tell, "God damn it, I'm going to really like this song." I guess I could equate that guitar riff with Brody's voice, kind of derivative, kind of ugly, but still pleasing in some guilty way. The song is host to the Distillers' strongest vocal melody to date. From the verse, to the hook, to the bridge, the song embodies what the Distillers can be at their best, a not so original band, but one with a sound somewhat their own and a fairly distinct approach to melodies. After this little delight, Coral Fang temporarily falls off a pretty deep cliff. The next four tracks sulk back into ultra mediocrity. For "Dismantle Me", "Die on the Rope", and the album's title track, their forgettable melodies and straightforward punk approach are the key problems; thusly, they could easily fit onto an album by any band similar to the Distillers. For the drudgingly slow "The Gallow is God", Brody seems to be borrowing some from her new boyfriend, because it sounds like Anti-Flag playing a Queens of the Stone Age cover.
Coral Fang's second half picks up for most of the slack of the first half. "The Hunger" starts out with an almost neo-folk intro, it's a pretty surprising addition the record, but I just sat there waiting for it to be interrupted by a slew of crunching power chords to come in. Oh, there they came. It definitely takes away from the approach of the song, but not all that much. It's still a rather delightful song with a strong melody running through most of it. The next few tracks seem to pick up where "Drain the Blood" left off. Sticking more to the typical nu-punk sound, but bringing in some tunes that just might get you singin' in the shower. The last track, "Deathsex", is a punk rock attempt at an epic closer I think. I can't honestly say I have any idea what the band was thinking with this one. It kicks off with a fast, snare banging beat that is at least an up-kick on the tempo compared to the rest of the record, it slows down soon enough, but the song seems to begin to fall into the boredom and loss of pop-sense that slays the majority of the first half of the record. The actual song is about 2-minutes long, then it falls off into redundant "punk" noise. Hitting random chords and bowing to the feedback gods is the practice for the rest of the record, and it's pretty stupid. People would like to complain about "Staying Alive" from Cursive's The Ugly Organ as a band really stretching out a song for a big finish, but once someone catches a whiff of "Deathsex", they'll be begging for "Staying Alive", whether it's from Cursive or the Bee Gees.
I want to hate this record, and I'll probably take plenty of heat for not doing so. With one great single and a second half consisting of rather strong pop-punk tracks, I just can't help but enjoy Coral Fang. Anyone who knows me knows me as one who loves to profess hatred towards the Distillers and any other modern punk outfit, but I've been won over. It's not a great record by any means, but it's certainly enjoyable. Download it, listen to the first song, then listen to the album from "The Hunger" on, but leave out the last track, and tell me you aren't somewhat feeling it. You might be too swallowed by your preceding dislike for the band to dig it, but maybe not. It's a fun little pop record at times, and I'm a sucker for a catchy hook.
Editor's note: I opted to put the "clean" cover up as I think it's much better than that garbage they have on the "explicit" version. Thanks!
