It's been 15-20 years since I heard good punk music. Guess what? I found something that has at least peaked my interest. Ghoti Hook (pronounced "go-tee," thank you very much) takes me back to those hard core punk days before new wave ruined it and sets my head rattling. It has enough energy to power the entire eastern seaboard and still have plenty left over. Banana Man is Ghoti Hook's second release, an excellent blending of the Christian message with the genre, and my first taste of them.
Believe it or not, it really does take some effort to play traditional punk. It's not just slam the instruments as hard as you can and try to stay in key. Done right (as these guys do) it is an exciting journey into speed guitar riffs and drumming skills that the average Joe Musician just doesn't have the skill to pull off. The vocals are usually the weakest part of any punk effort, and this is no exception. Most of the time they are just hard to understand (even shouted), but occasionally they slip into the totally unintelligible.
These guys even preserved the true punk flavor with lyrics that are at times obscure, juvenile, and... well... catchy! Ghoti Hook's message is simple, too puerile at times, but nonetheless fun. The humor they use gives just enough of a "We don't take ourselves seriously" tone to make you smile as you sing along.
If you like punk even a little, check this out; it's worth a listen. If you can't stand punk, you'll probably want to avoid Ghoti Hook altogether. I know I'll be curious to see where these guys go as they mature.
3.5 tocks
Other coverage for this album
The Lighthouse Unsorted 1998Reviewed by Shawn SmithBananas, strange costumes, and Ghoti Hook: all three, very fun topics. Combine them and something good is bound to happen. Not to keep you in suspense any longer, the result is the title track to Ghoti Hook's new album, Banana Man, a rather odd little piece about a man whose job is dressing up like a banana. For those of you who have heard and enjoy Ghoti Hook - rejoice, the album is true to…The Phantom Tollbooth 1997Reviewed by Jeremy ChoiTo this day, it is this writer's belief that Ghoti Hook's 1996 debut release on Tooth and Nail Records, Sumo Surprise, is one of the best records that Tooth and Nail has released in its four years of existence. The five-man band from Virginia produced a very fun and heavily punk-style record with Sumo Surprise, one that would delight fans of MxPx, Green Day, Rancid, and Value Pac. The music was…The Phantom Tollbooth 1997Reviewed by Linda T. StonehockerThe boys of Ghoti Hook are back with more pop-punk silliness crammed onto a CD bearing the image of a man. Not just any man, but a man in glasses and a banana suit. The beat rarely slows, and the production is an accurate rendition of amplified instruments at full volume, very much like their first release, Sumo Surprise. Please don't look for deep meaning in that banana suit--it isn't there--but…Similar sounding releases
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