B-sides comps have a predisposition to sounding like
toss-off bits of fluff filler, usually relegated to
the shelves of completist collectors and uber-fans,
but Cake, ever efficient in the delivery of retro-chic
geek funk rock, sidesteps this possible disaster. Even
with an album brimming with covers (another warm over
pitfall neatly sidestepped by the veteran group), Cake
compiles a smooth set showcasing the band’s diversity
within a trademark sloppy-silly, trumpet and crushed
guitar patchwork of melody and rhythm.
Fans hooked on Cake ever since “Rock ‘n’ Roll
Lifestyle” skewered the alt-rock world of walking
clichés in ’94, will not be surprised
by this collection’s aesthetic homogenization
of divergent source material, but even the casual Cake
fan can rejoice in the whiteboy funkification of Black
Sabbath’s “War Pigs” (both live a
studio versions included as bookends for the disc)
or the honky-tonk pluck of Kenny Rogers and Buck Owens
rehashed for the skinny tie, thick glasses set.
The mathematical chop of bass and fuzz guitar on “Never,
Never Gonna Give You Up” sounds as fresh as it
did when it first showed up on the American Werewolf
in Paris soundtrack. John McCrea’s lucidly
lazy vocal delivery sounds as comfortable tackling
Barry White as it does churning out live originals “Short
Skirt, Long Jacket” and “It’s Coming
Down” toward the tail end of the disc. The assured
live performances (captured from around the world for
dramatic effect), vault the listener straight into
the scattershot realm of transcendently fun rock Cake
excels at, especially the sweltering muted trumpet
and Beatles-esque vocal harmonizing of “It’s
Coming Down.”
Despite the acid burn-inducing synthetic grape odor
of the scratch-n-sniff cover art (different colors
signal different scents, avoid purple), Cake delivers
a snazzy collection of engaging egghead funkiness.
Favorite Track: “War Pigs”
