Opie Gone Bad – Four

Opie Gone Bad - Four

Four, Opie Gone Bad

Four starts out with the song “What the World Needs Now is a Good Funk Record.” We can’t argue with that and this album does the job, even if it’s not all pure funk. These nine originals, and one cover tune, are probably the best batch new tunes from the band in many many years. Windall Armour’s bad-ass bass grooves are so deep they shook everything on my desk, and that’s after I turned the volume down. Jake Schroeder’s vocals are terrific and have always been one of the best parts of this band. Notably, new drummer (since their last CD, anyway) Tarrel Martin keeps perfect time. He had some mighty big shoes to fill and has done a fine job of it, even injecting some new and exciting energy into a band that was in danger of becoming stale. Randy Chavez not only plays killer guitar, he is also credited with producing, engineering, mixing and mastering this album. That’s a lot of work for one guy to do well, but he did and excellent job. The whole CD sounds top-notch from start to end. “Black Dog” from Led Zeppelin is the only cover and it’s just cool and funky enough to fit right in with the rest of the album. Also worth noting are the backing vocals from Channel 9’s Kirk Montgomery on three tracks, though it’s hard to distinguish him from the others on those tracks. Armour handles lead vox on “Let’s Go” is a cool tune that’s not in the usual OGB funk style, more of a hip-hop number, actually. Eric Gunnison adds some nice piano work on “My Love.” “Cougar” is a hilarious tounge-in-cheek ditty that’s funky and fun while making fun of cougars. Here’s a taste: “Big fake boobs old faded tattoos, huge lips, retractable claws…” you get the drift. “People” uses some interesting electronic voice effects. The last track “Gold Digger” features squeeze box highlights from John Magnie (of the subdudes). This one is purportedly inspired by a specific person, but nobody’s talking and there aren’t enough clues in the lyrics for us to figure it out. We’ll leave that up to you.
Buy this album if you like to dance or just want to hear something new from a band you’ve loved for years.
For more info please visit: www.OpieGoneBad.com