Whoops. Seems someone forgot to give
Men, Women & Children the memo. Didn't disco pretty much die with the '70s? Well, consider the negligence a blessing in disguise, as the excuse to bust that orange leisure suit out of your closet has finally arrived. That's right, on their dance-ready self-titled debut,
Men, Women & Children balk at the overly serious bands of the new millennium and have come for nothing more than fun and partying under the bright lights. All of the electro beats, synth loops, strings, and funk attitude -- used to maximum effect -- make one wonder if all the years founding guitarist Todd Weinstock spent in the alternative metal/hardcore group
Glassjaw resulted in the severely repressed booty-shaking that he's now just realizing (similar to fellow
Glassjaw alum Daryl Palumbo's dance/post-punk outfit
Head Automatica). The discotheque glitter ball is sparkling bright from the opening of "Dance in My Blood," and there's no question what they'll be doing into the wee hours of the night -- especially with a literal chorus that proclaims "You don't need a reason to get out on the dancefloor/And we can get it on and on all night long." Lyrics like this appear throughout the rest of the album -- since really, it plays as just one big party -- in songs with such great titles as "Photosynthesis (We're Losing O2")," "Who Found Mister Fabulous?," and "Monkey Monkee Men" (which includes lines like "We're monkey monkee men/And we'll eat all your friends"). Resemblances to other bands and movie soundtracks are littered throughout the mix, as "At Night We Like to Fight" sounds like
VHS or Beta playing
Franz Ferdinand's guitars and "The Name of the Train Is the Hurricane" has moments of
Michael Jackson posturing. And it's almost certain that Kevin Bacon is dancing to the opening '80s beat of "Monkey Monkee Men" somewhere. Pretty much, this record is some of the most fun to be had from a band in 2006.
Men, Women & Children are sure to bring at least a little hop to the most uptight of steps, and trying to control spontaneous boogying may prove to be a problem for anyone with a sense of fun. ~ Corey Apar