The Go! Team

When the ramshackle British pop troop The Go! Team released their 2004 debut, Thunder, Lightning, Strike, listeners were wholly disarmed by their distinctive amalgamation of post-punk angst, retro R&B and euphoric cheerleading chants. But that beguiling sloppiness, like a messy child stomping through puddles, eventually loses the inherent sweetness of its unpredictability after awhile. This isn't to say that

The Go! Team's sophomore release, Proof of Youth, is inferior—it’s just more of the same.

The first single "Grip Like a Vice" tries hard to recapture the magical spontaneity of its predecessor, opening with blaring sirens—again. And while there's no denying that "Keys to the City" is a pep rally in your iPod, it would have been nicer to hear the band truly mix things up—perhaps trading some unabashed fun for a little more heft. Even a cameo by Chuck D of Public Enemy on the punching "Flashlight Fight" doesn't provoke like it should; however, it will move your ass. And when you factor that in, maybe unpredictability is overrated.

—Arye Dworken
10.10.07

The Go! Team burst onto the indie scene a couple years ago like the proverbial breath of fresh air. Their music, built on samples of schoolyard chants and TV theme rockers, made most everything else sound gray and a little timid in comparison. Thunder, Lightning, Strike, their debut album, was a brilliant record and Proof of Youth can't help but suffer when stacked up against it. Indeed, it might take a spin or two before you can shake the feeling that you're listening to outtakes from Thunder, Lightning, Strike, but once you do, the album reveals itself to be another, though slightly lesser, stroke of greatness. Rather that relying heavily on samples this time out, bandleader Ian Parton goes with a live band approach with samples blended in. It results in a slightly more organic sound, but one that's still recognizably the Go! Team. Meaning that the master tapes were dragged behind a car for a couple of miles, then dipped in wool, and left out to melt in the hot August sun. The resulting tinny and muddy mess may be enough to give audiophiles the hives, but to anyone else it's an exciting mess that fairly explodes out of the speakers in a hissy rush of sound. The drums pound, the horns blare, the guitars wail and clatter, the vocals shout to be heard; it's a whirling fun house of music. Which would be enough to recommend the album, but the songs themselves are strong and equally as impressive. "Grip Like a Vice," which features beamed-in-from-the-early-'80s raps from female pioneers Lisa Lee of Cosmic Force and Sha Rock from Funky 4 + 1, is the equal of anything on Thunder; "Doing It Right" has lovely verses sung by guitarist Kaori Tsuchida to match the instantly hooky chorus; "I Never Needed It Now So Much" is a indie pop ballad sung sweetly by Elisabeth Esselink (also known as Solex); and "Patricia's Moving Picture" shows a sensitive and melodic side the group would be wise to investigate in the future. Taking the place of the samples on Proof of Youth are many guest appearances. Along with Solex's appearance, Marina from Bonde do Rolê sings on the stomping "Titanic Vandalism," two rap crews from opposite ends of the age spectrum (daycare cuties the Rappers Delight Club and real old-school jump-roping rappers the Double Dutch Divas) are on board for "Universal Speech," and Chuck D of Public Enemy raps on "Flashlight Fight." Only the latter guest spot feels like a gimmick. Chuck D's rap isn't as bad as his "Kool Thing" misadventure, but it sounds wildly out of place next to Ninja's exhortations and the old-school lightheartedness that prevails elsewhere. No doubt the idea of working with one of their heroes was a thrill for the band, but the album would have been better off without the song. One misstep isn't enough to ruin things, though, and if you can forgive them for basically making the same album again, Proof of Youth is a pretty spectacular continuation of some of the most exciting, innovative sounds around. Next time they'll have to stretch some, but for now the Go! Team is doing it right. [Initial pressings of the album included a bonus disc made up of the four b-sides to the album's singles including a remix of Grip Like a Vice.] ~ Tim Sendra, Rovi