The Vandals

The Vandals are like a Tex Avery cartoon. They're wacky, their intentions are absurdly comedic and their eyes pop out when ever they see a cute girl passing by; well maybe not quite. But one thing for sure is that The Vandals are way past their angst filled "Suburbia" days; now they just want to make people laugh with their upteenth album "Hitler Bad, Vandals Good." Normally, when a punk band -or any band in general- tries to be funny and musically inclined at the same time, they only succeed in one out of the two efforts. Surprisingly, The Vandals have a nice balance of both with songs like "My Girlfriend's Dead," with lyrics that go: "My girlfriend's dead you see, it's a total lie- but it's easier on me than having to admit that she likes someone else." Then there's "I've Got An Ape Drape," which throws out a plethora of adjectives for the short on top long on back haircut: "Hockey Hair, Mullet, Norco Neck Warmer, " et cetra. And to top it off on a serious note, there's even a nice dedication to former Pennywise bassist Jason Matthew Thirsk -- who committed suicide a year prior to this release. ~ Mike DaRonco, All Music Guide