This CD is weird; weird music, weird themes, bold, VERY BOLD. Somehow this CD makes the lighthearted queasy. The music is folk-ish, alt-ish, borderline experimental rock. I am not familiar with this band's music, so it can't be compared to their older stuff. This music seems inviting, but turn one's back and it'll kick the butt with music and lyrics that'll open eyes wide. It warns, it shows, it bleeds a passion for music and to get the point across. The point is almost so blatant, so poetic, so comedic, that it looks like a joke. But don't be fooled into thinking this CD is a joke.
The premise of Rats in Heaven is that there may be rats all around us but the lyrics, the sound manipulation is so confusing that the normal radio friendly ear would toss this out; that's kind of the point! This CD isn't easy to listen to. It is almost like a puzzle and brilliant for being so experimental and brutal in the lyrics, but almost serene and rock-gothic in the music. Rats in Heaven has to be heard to be fathomed at all. The lyrics are not for the lighthearted and will challenge almost anyone's thought process.
3.5 tocks
Other coverage for this album
HM Magazine #109Reviewed by James WetzThe only thing more exhausting than listening to Rats in Heaven is trying in vain to classify it in the context of other music. The broad range of instruments used, from standards like guitars and drums to the ones collecting dust in a storage shed (Irish flute and penny whistle!), doesn't even come close to the range of lyrical content. Singer Jeff Suffering is the indie version of Counting…Similar sounding releases
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