Fartbarf - Dirty Power

 

What would you say if I told you that I know this electronica band called Fartbarf with band members that wear monkey masks and songs that feature vocals so distorted that it sounds like a robot is singing? You'd probably say that sounds terrible; it sounds like it's going to be another terrible joke band that relies on some dumb shtick to get sales. That's where you'd be wrong. Not only is Fartbarf a real band that takes their music seriously, their music, for the most part, is really good!

According to an interview with LA Weekly, the band chose their weird name, and their personas as "space-neanderthals" not only to attract a larger audience, but also to show that they "could take themselves seriously and try to make a name for themselves" despite it.

Their music its self takes inspiration from metal, synth punk, and EDM. One of the band members described it as a combination of Hot Chip, Devo, and Slayer. I'm not exactly sure if I would compare them to Slayer myself, but you can hear some metal influence in the heavy sounding melodies and buzzy synths found in a lot of their songs. The Devo influence is much more obvious. Their songs are packed full of nerdy lyrics and quirky melodies reminiscent of Devo's music. Sadly, I can't comment on the Hot Chip influence, because I've never listened to them. Perhaps that could be a future review?

Now, onto the album! Dirty Power is the first and only studio album by Fartbarf, although I hear they are planning on releasing a new album in the future. Dirty Power starts with easily the best song on the album "Homeless in Heathrow". As the name suggests, this song is about a homeless person sitting around near Heathrow Airport and just zoning out. This doesn't sound too interesting, but the song's infectious beat in combination with this cool whining synth sound just makes this song awesome. There's also a good music video that goes with this song about a murderous babysitter.

Another song I liked on this album is "Your Sky is Falling". I'm not sure, but I think this song is the band making observations about humanity from the perspective of their "space neanderthal" personas. This song starts a little slow, but really picks up during the chorus when this awesome catchy melody comes in. I especially like the trilled synth sound.

The last of my favorite songs I'll talk about on this album is "Warp Whistle". The title is obviously a Mario 3 reference, which is fitting because the melody of this songs seems to be inspired by the 8 bit music of that era of video games. The lyrics of this song also keep with the old school video game theme, by using the act of playing an arcade cabinet game as a metaphor for breaking off a bad friendship. This song is great all the way  through, combining the nostalgia of old video games with another infectious melody to create a song I just want to keep listening to over and over again.

The worst track on this album is probably the second track, "Panopticon". On this track the band doesn't really play to their strengths, and suffers for it. The lyrics are repetitive, and not particulary good; the infectious melody common to Fartbarf songs is missing, and replaced with a more intricate and annoying melody; and there isn't really any big hook, or memorable chorus.

Fartbarf is a band that I think everyone can appreciate. They are fun, nerdy, and most of their songs are super catchy. Give them a listen, and you'll probably find at least one song that sticks with you.

Rating: 7.5/10

Favorite Tracks: Homeless in Heathrow, Your Sky is Falling, Mission at Hand, Play the Game, Warp Whistle

Least Favorite Track: Panopticon

Listen to Fartbarf - Dirty Power here!