Brakes - Rock Is Dodelijk (Live) (Album)
What happens when you combine members of The Electric Soft Parade and British Sea Power? A super non- stop uber- rocking disco party, that’s what. Brakes, or BrakesBrakesBrakes as they are know to their American fans, have been charging around the globe since 2004, led by the entrancing Eamon Hamilton on guitar/vocals. Hamilton famously claimed that his band is responsible for Barack Obama winning the election with their song Cheney ("Cheney, Cheney, Cheney, stop being such a dick"). This attitude oozes all over their new live album Rock Is Dodelijk.
The word Dodelijk is Dutch for 'lethal' and the band sure have nailed it with Rock Is Dodelijk capturing the raw energy of their live performances, leaning toward their heavier punk rock sounds. Rock Is Dodelijk is like a best of Brakes compilation, recorded at shows in the UK and Germany in late 2008 / early 2009, around the time the band was preparing to record and release their latest studio album Touchdown.
Opening with the guitar frenzy of Hey Hey, with its fantastic sing- a- long lyrics of "won’t you shut the fuck up, I’m just trying to watch the band!", Brakes power through twenty songs in just over forty minutes. This record is a shambolic collection of rollicking power- pop ditties that will have you thrashing around like a jack rabbit on speed. The live album showcases Brakes' back catalogue with only three songs from Touchdown included on the record. It’s a heady rock trip, that barely gives the listener time to breathe as they are hit with track after track of propulsive guitar explosions.
All the big singles are included, with ripper versions of All Night Disco Party and their break- out single Pick Up The Phone, and two different recordings of Hey Hey. The album ends with a cover of the Johnny Cash classic Jackson that works surprisingly well. Rock Is Dodelijk is a testament to the stripped- down bare aesthetics of the band and does well to capture the ‘fuck you’ spirit that makes Brakes so goddamn loveable. The performances are tight and the high quality recording completely drones out the sounds of the crowd, enhancing the rambunctious sounds that have given Brakes their solid live reputation.
