Reviews Search

New Wet Kojak, "Do Things"

Last week, GVSB. This week, their side project New Wet Kojak. Johnny Temple and Scott McCloud of GVSB record with other local musicians in their hometown of Washington, DC, to create music very much in the GVSB vain, but with horns and a broader, sexier sound. Ever-present, though, is the appealing yet odd voice of McCloud, who here utters phrases that many might see as just plain incoherent. But it all works, and the resulting sound is hard to ignore.

Previous albums saw New Wet Kojak being more ethereal, less structured, with a heavy edge. They wanted to rock your booty while they blew your mind. Sometimes it was abrasive, sometimes so unstructured and frantic you didn't know which way was up. And the horns, while great-sounding, seemed like an after-thought in areas. "Do Things" has none of these problems. The release is mostly laid-back, groovy, and pop-music sound byte oriented. The horns are nicely integrated to provide for a fuller, more realized sound. Best of all, New Wet Kojak still want to rock that booty. Despite the band members' commitments to their other projects, New Wet Kojak does tour frequently, and they're amazing live. And with GVSB on temporary hiatus while they sorted out their label problems, New Wet Kojak hit the and recorded a new EP, "No. 4," earlier this year. But it's "Do Things," released in 2000 but virtually ignored, that showed us the new New Wet Kojak roadmap.

 

samples: