The Burgers of Beef launched their new cd, Bingo, last Saturday at the Carlton Hotel in East Perth, in one of the best performances I have ever seen. They played their new tracks as well as the favourites from their first cd. The new music was a big hit with the crowd with an impromptu mosh pit forming at times. The band made up of Chad, Blaine, Pete and De, showed just what experienced performers they are. They used many classic dance moves such as leg kicks and hand claps to keep the crowd entertained. The performance wound up with an encore and a cd signing. The only thing that slightly marred the evening was some controversy about a cd case that was sold without a cd in it. Aside from that everything was fine. There was no rain, no power cuts, it all went pretty smoothly.

But enough of the once-in-a-lifetime launch. I know you want to hear about the songs. They lead one’s soul on an emotional roller coaster ride while retaining an upbeat feel. First is the poignant nostalgia of ‘Palmerston’, quickly followed by the cheerful ‘Hooker’. Then there’s the short and punchy ‘Breakin’ tha Noo’s’ containing relationship angst and the happy ‘Never Kick the Dog’. The essence of wanting to fit into a crowd and isolation is captured perfectly in ‘Penguin’. The sad tale of a penguin in a rock’n’roll band who can only play the kazoo because he doesn’t have hands is one we can all relate to. The final track is ‘Yeah Yeah Yeah’ which unexpectedly only contains the words yeah yeah yeah.

The songs really showcase the multitalentedness of the band, as each member has a variety of skills. All four sing to varying degrees and do handclaps. Chad is on guitar / bad inbetween song banter; Blaine is on bass / rock kicks, Pete plays the trombone / keyboard / big hair; De plays drums / pilates. The Burgers are obviously not afraid of a gimmick as their performance suggests, for the cd features a humorous reversible cover.

At only 13:10, some may criticise the short length of the cd, but every track is pure gold with not a note wasted. Fans will be left wanting more and if the newly written but unreleased song, ‘Satellite’, is any indication, the best is yet to come.

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This entry was posted by the illustrious Andy Cocker on Saturday, November 15th, 2003. It concerns such pressing issues as . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.