Fuxedos, The – “Fuxedos, The” – [Glazed Yams, Inc.]

Naysayer   6/5/2013   A Library, CD

The Fuxedos are an interesting band to classify, to say the least, as is their album “The Fuxedos”. Is it art? Is it high school nonsense? Is it good? The answer to these questions is really up to the listener. They have a somewhat obsessive following of dedicated fans that eat up the stage antics and theatrics, and for good reason. It’s all pretty silly, crazy stuff. But is it good? Again, it’s up to the listener. Pretty much the brain child of Danny Shorago, he writes the music and the lyrics. He produces, directs and edits the video. He does all the vocals. He is almost every character on the cover. He’s equally comfortable in a dress as he is in a 70’s/80’s tuxedo with ruffled shirt. But what is this all about? Think Zappa with the adolescent lyrics. Think Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo (before they were Oingo Boingo). Think Firesign Theater and Polkacide. It’s theatrics and extremely accomplished musicianship and lyrics about cephalopods and robot vampire wombats and jellybeans and Disneyland. The band is tight. Constantly changing time signatures, different tempos within the same song, and saxophones and sousaphone. The members are experienced, coming from Sleepytime Gorilla Museum and Morris Tepper. They know what they are doing. Try it. See if you like it. Who knows.