Artist: (www.sonictrout.com/bands/chandler/)
Title: Let’s Have a Pancake!
Genre: Rock?
by Ben Ohmart
Don’t ask me what the title of the cd means – I don’t know! All I know is that after 50 minutes of Chandler, I’m not sure where to place him. He goes all over the musical map, sharing a lot in common with Frank Zappa because of the humor, breadth and big band-rock format he brings to modern audiences. Whereas FZ was king of guitar and funk of the 70s, this Philharmonic glides in with an alternative voice at the front, and pulls from the 60s and the 90s with equal socket-wrenching force. Like the Beatles band stepping in front of an orchestra (or more rightly, The Who’s Tommy), Chandler’s buddies sound mainly like an alt-rock band that happens to step in front of accordion, mandolin, enough horns to stop an elephant, and the occasional frolicking harmonies.
Yeah, ‘Crab Napkin’ might be the modern equivalent to Frankie or one of your crooners in the 40s standing before the mic with brass blowing up his ass from behind. It’s all pop, it’s all to entertain, but I think I’ll take the CTP’s update, since they take more chances and really screw around with the formula of songs. Hell, they even do an unlisted cover of ‘Hello, Dolly’.
But my favorites have to be the quirky ‘Stay Like That’ and ‘Baby Come Get Your Cat’. Songs that really define a situation; and situations that haven’t been gone over and over and over in the tired realm of love. I applaud you people!!