Rhubarb -- Kamikaze

6/10

My favorite long lost radio tradition is the "caller number nine gets a free CD" one. CD's were once a hot commodity, $18.99 at Blockbuster music, and a free one of any quality was a fairly big deal. Anytime KLSU gave one away, I dialed them up. That's how I ended up with one of the more obscure releases in my collection, Australian alternative rock band Rhubarb's debut, Kamikaze.
Kamikaze, which was a moderate hit in Australia, features a very turn-of-the-century, few-frills alternative rock sound, mostly a couple of guitars, bass, drums, and vocals. The pace is mostly chill, except for a couple of random punk songs. The relaxed feel is at first quite comforting, as is the singer's subtle Australian lilt. However, that same unrushed pace also makes the album a bit of a bore. Things pick up at times, such fourth track, "Holiday"'s fun, song-ending horns. This leads into an interesting mid-section, with vibe-changing string-ballad, "Do Do Do," and the very unexpected punk rock stylings of "Excerciser." "Excerciser," essentially a statement of faith by dissension against the secular world is fun until Rhubarb get to the unfortunate line, "Got a mom and a dad/only ones I've ever had." That's not exactly something under any child's control.
The album bogs down again on track seven, "Want Me Back," a mid-tempo drag, and track eight "Lead Me" doesn't exactly pull it out, even with its somber horns--really the two songs are interchangeable. "Waiting for Me," doesn't do anything new, either. It is at this point in the review that I adjust the 7/10 that was on top of this review to a 6/10. I can't be too forgiving to something that gets this boring. At least the last song, "Nice Girls," picks up the pace, however silly.
I won a decent amount of albums by calling in to KLSU. None of them sucked. One of them was kind of bland, though.


1999 Inpop Records
1. Zero 3:33
2. Kamikaze 5:09
3. Pennywise 3:47
4. Holiday 3:31
5. Do Do Do 2:56
6. Exerciser 1:41
7. Want Me Back 3:09
8. Lead Me 3:17
9. Waiting for Me 3:36
10. Nice Girls 2:01