Pong – Bubble City / 2005 Realistic Records / 9 Tracks / http://www.pongsongs.com / http://www.realisticrecords.com / Reviewed 12 November 2005
There is a funkiness to “Killer Lifestyle” that cannot be stifled. Pong play the role of seventies rock act perfectly; much in the vein of Scissor Sisters or Aloha, they mix a clear production with catchy hooks to come up with a retro radio-friendly sound. The only thing that sinks Pong early is the extremely long runtime of “Killer Lifestyle”; there is not enough new material in the track’s five minutes to really keep the song fresh. By the time the track runs down, one really will wonder while this was five minutes and not something considerably shorter. The song is good – don’t get me wrong – but just is too long.
The slower tempo of “Secret Meat” moves Pong into the realm of music most affiliated with Placebo; there is a little twinge of Iggy Pop present on this track, but the track again falls into an episodic style that stifles innovation. There still is a heavy radio-friendly sound, and while it is true that the music on “Bubble City” is tops when it comes to mindless danceable tracks, there is little here beyond the surface. The heavy use of the vocoder is novel for perhaps the first minute of its introduction during “Interpol”, but the band really pushes its luck with the extremely heavy use of it throughout. The modification of the guitar to a shrill sound that works with the vocoder just exacerbates the problems with “Interpol”. The oddly sparse sound of “Cherokee” gives the track a cold feeling that turns to confusion with the off-beat guitar breakdown that punctuates the middle of the track.
It is nice to see some experimentation – Pong really forces this different sound to work as it is normalized into being one of the most necessary parts of “Cherokee”. When Pong drops much of the seventies pretense, they come out with a track like “Click O.K.” that is endearing, as well as standing out on its own without anything in the way of gimmicks needed. The B-52s/Cake/Sigue Sigue Sputnik sound of the band during the track is a welcome change of pace, and it may just be this song that shows the reality of the band. The album is not perfect, but the high spots of “Bubble City” rival anything in terms of pure catchiness and fun rock. It would be interesting to see if Pong keeps this style for future releases, or if different albums would bring different styles to the forefront.
Top Tracks: Click O.K., The Owl
Rating: 5.1/10
[JMcQ]