steering clear of the mainstream
since 2001

june 2010

review
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info opinion

Pee-Pee

"Castile Jackine is Vooded at Broonus Mousin: Volume 1" CD

Helmet Room Records

Genre: folk-pop, indie pop

Denver, CO

Jan 7, 2009

Despite what any haters might say, Pee-Pee is not an unreasonable name for a band. Sure it doesn't have the same sense of brash irony as a Shitdisco or Anal Cunt, but nothing says "fuck you" to the hipster masses better than a name like Pee-Pee. Oh, to be four.

The first in a two-volume series, this album is the whimsical brainchild of Doo Crowder, a Denver-based musician who has enlisted a whole bevy of friends for this enterprise. The record has its more conventional moments, such as folk-popper "Jaroline," an Eels and Sufjan Sevens influenced highlight that opens the record promisingly. Pretty "I Hope My New House Feels Welcoming For You" is also relatively straightforward, exuding a sorrowful acoustic pop vibe.

On the weirder end of the spectrum is the alarmingly cool "Madness Song (Remix)," which uses every manner of studio trickery to produce an utterly divine stereophonic experience - think Bruce Haack meets Guided By Voices. Even further out to space is the aptly-titled "Freakout Jam /" and its medley of free jazz, art rock, and experimental influences. Castile Jackine gets stranger, or at least more eclectic, as it draws to a close. The Animal Collective influenced chant-along of "Pee-Pee Song" is good ol' fashioned fun, while appallingly-named "I Love U 2 much" weds sixties girl group pop with Henry Cow-esque instrumentation.

Pee-Pee's record is a fun ride, and it's easy to become enamoured with its goofy personality. The trouble with a record as eclectic as this is an inevitable lack of cohesiveness. It can be difficult to conceptualize Castile Jackine as a single record, and imagining the prototypical Pee-Pee song is a futile exercise. As a result, an open-minded audience is required, although the melodic salience of these eight songs buffers the effect of its radical variety. All things said, however, I'm looking forward to volume two.

pee-pee's myspace

83%

Matt Shimmer

[Vitals: 8 tracks, distributed by the label, released Nov. 11, 2008]