CD Review - The Cusack-Loggins EP by Dr. Pants

“Dr. Pants gained my love by introducing their drummer as Disco Pony. Their power-pop did even more to gain my love once they started singing about young men who love John Cusack (guilty), bearded hipsters (guilty), Firefly references (guilty), donuts (guilty) and ironic rapping (guilty). This band seems as if it were scientifically engineered for me to like it. Their power-pop tunes split the difference between Fountains of Wayne and Weezer, albeit with ironic rapping every now and then.”
–Stephen Carradini, OKGazette.com, 05/05/2011



Release Date: 21 October 2008

Genre: Nerd Power Groove Rock; Weezer & Beck made a baby with Phish and that baby is Dr. Pants.

Publisher: (C) 2008 Little Weasel Records

Label: Little Weasel Records

Time: 23m 44s

Review Date:03-November-2008

Format: MP3

JivePK™: http://jivepk.jivewired.com/drpants


Click image to purchase from Amazon

Track Listing:

01. It All Depends 4:04
02. Bootyfest 5:39
03. Cusack Prelude 0:43
04. If I Weer John Cusack 3:38
05. Kenny Loggins 4:12
06. Sweet Natasha 5:28

Review:

The world of facetious wit has always numbered musicians among its residents, and one band has gentrified the neighborhood with its latest release. Combining superb pop craftsmanship with a hyperactive sense of caprice, Dr. Pants' new release The Cusack-Loggins EP is a trajectory of surreal ideas and a catchy cataract of fun. If you have seen anything by John Cusack or heard anything by Kenny Loggins you will catch the subtle innuendo to culture and identity that is immersed with dulcet intelligence and a clever phrase or two.

Produced by band members David Broyles and Dustin Ragland, the six-song EP is a fiery mix of all the elements that make Dr. Pants a blast to see live; power poppy, Weezer-esque guitar rock, funky, jammy suite-like compositions that would make Phish jealous, and the quirky sense of humor that recalls the best work of Ween and They Might Be Giants.

Careful not to burden the listener with stuffy instrumentation or ponderous lyrics, this release is, simply stated, a stone groove. The best example may be the song "Bootyfest", a funky bass-infused jam that interpolates eclectic whimsy without taking itself seriously. Following the rocking fan-favorite "It All Depends", which kicks off the album with a wisp of subtle seriousness, "Bootyfest" launches beyond its suggestive title to carve a realistic life mask from the conceptual clay of : "You gotta spend some to get some." It is indeed an inspiring ode to the fine art of simply finding a platonic yet sexual relationship, or for lack of better nomenclature - chasing tail.

The memorable "Cusack Prelude > If I Were John Cusack" duo couches its elation in lyrics like "If I were John Cusack I would make High Fidelity 2 and I'd make it totally awesome - it would be the greatest movie ever made", and it's chorus "Lane Meyer and Lloyd Dobler, Martin Blank and Rob Gordon" which is a kaleidoscope of some of Cusack's most loved movie characters and feels amazingly like a song Jack Black would improvise on the set of "High Fidelity".

Note To The Band: I'd close every show with "If I Were John Cusack" and let the crowd continue the refrain in a crescendo of a Capella love as the band leaves the stage to a sea of Bic lighters and encore extravagance.

Note To The Band, II: (From the "I never saw THAT coming" constituency) Surprisingly stunning guitar about 40-seconds into "Kenny Loggins", surprising only because it is completely unexpected and so damn good.

"Cusack-Loggins" is a convivial and wry lesson in perceptions and particularity. Its unpretentious and well-crafted, artsy grooves work because they avoid the bombastic approach that worked against some of the latter works by They Might Be Giants or some of the forced efforts of The Barenaked Ladies or The Conchords, songs that actually try too hard to be a little too artsy.

Which begs the question: is it in fact unfair to criticize a formerly great artist for his latter day sins, is it better to burn out or fade away?

Likely, the performances of these songs in a live setting is far better. But even with the limitations of studio reproduction, the songs are quite good. As I said, "Bootyfest" is such an amazing song that were it released by a successfully mainstream artist (like Beck for example), it would probably be an instant hit. Grab the CD for eight bucks and if you still need convincing, you can hear plenty of Dr. Pants on Jivewired Radio as well.

About Dr. Pants:



Dr. Pants is David Broyles, Dustin Ragland, Kenneth Murray and Aaron Vasquez. They are the purveyors of a style known as NERD POWER GROOVE ROCK; Weezer and Beck made a baby with Phish, and that baby is Dr. Pants. These four musicians currently find themselves in the midst of THE TRIP; a double album that they are releasing as four separate EPs. In other words, Dr. Pants are giving the world a double album, one side at a time. THE TRIP, SIDE 1: ILLUSION & TRUTH is set for release on June 7.

Dr. Pants is the brainchild of guitarist/vocalist/composer David Broyles. With a songwriting style that borrowed initially from the Beatles, R.E.M. and They Might Be Giants, David’s first musical ventures took shape in OKC in the early 90′s, when he started releasing self-produced cassettes and playing acoustic shows in local coffeehouses. After moving to Santa Fe, NM for college in 1993, David established himself in the Santa Fe coffeehouse scene.

After releasing three more self-produced cassettes in college, and returning to OKC in the fall of 1999, David became much more focused on working with a band and thus, Dr. Pants was born. FEEZLE DAY, the debut Dr. Pants CD, was unleashed in 2000. Towards the end of 2001, David put Dr. Pants on hiatus, since all the other original members had departed, but resurrected it in 2004. Recording of the album GARDENING IN A TORNADO commenced immediately, as well as a return to the stage with new members Kenneth Murray (guitar), Aaron Vasquez (bass) and Dustin Ragland (drums). Containing 13 songs that (mostly) found Broyles returning to his songwriting roots, the album was finally released in 2006. At the end of 2007, GARDENING was named one of Music Connection’s top 25 “demo” recordings of the year. Numerous tracks from the album were also licensed by MTV and featured during broadcasts of “Next” and “Sex…With Mom & Dad.” Most recently, however, many of the songs from GARDENING have been heard on the pop culture phenomenon known as “Jersey Shore.” The song “Donuts” was also heard on “CBS Sunday Morning.” In 2008, Dr. Pants released THE CUSACK-LOGGINS EP. Then, in 2010, the band became one of the first acts to have their music video shot entirely on the iPhone 4. Directed by Kyle Roberts, the resulting clip for “Sarsaparilla Girl” has garnered over 58,000 views on YouTube.

And now, in 2011, Dr. Pants has given us THE TRIP. THE TRIP is just that: a musical journey through two complete albums worth of music. “I set out to write music that told a story, or many stories, and truly reflected all the aspects of a life,” says Broyles. “Whether real or imaginary, fantastic or mundane, these are stories, emotions and songs that continue to fascinate, entertain and move me.”