Hot on the heels of Big Fat Panda, comes a brand new single by Cartoon Violence! I believe that this is the first new material released since the fantastic Passive Aggressive album. How we've missed that CV sound!
From the off, the horns kick in with a motif reminiscent of Boys Will Be Boys by The Ordinary Boys (in a good way!) before Chuzz's characteristic keyboards bring us into the verse and carry the rhythm to the chorus. The chorus is classic Cartoon Violence with staccato horns at the key change and the vocal slows down and extends. This is the stuff we love. It wasn't until I listened to the car that I heard the bongos in the background which makes the rhythm section extra busy and drives the pace.
Chuzz tells us 'It’s about a bitter guy who was hoping he’d ‘make it’ in music but ends up playing in a cover band which he has always looked down on. He’s taking the piss out of his band mates who he thinks are justifying their situation by bragging about how much money they are making while they play yet another wedding.
It references rock cover standards like
Jonny b. goode
Alright Now
Mustang Sally
Get back
Midnight hour
And the ska standard Monkey man'
And the extra track (or B-side as we used to call it) a real treat for old school CV fans, a live version of Better from their awesome Tit-For-Tat album. Always a fast track on the album, but God knows what they took before playing this as it is at absolute breakneck speed. If you don't dance to this, there's something wrong with yer legs!
Friend or Foe releases Monday 8th February