Deerhoof - My Pal Foot Foot

(NJFM, 2002)

Chuck this one in the “W” bin, and that’s most definitely a “W” for “Why Bother?” Deerhoof salutes an obvious influence by covering the Shaggs’ “My Pal Foot Foot” in the fractured style of the original Philosophy of the World version (I actually prefer the creepy rethink on Shaggs’ Own Thing), bringing nothing much new to the song other than some electronic burps. You’re not gonna out-weird the Shaggs, so why make yourselves look like pretenders by even taking a stab at the stuff? Can’t even call this one a noble effort; it’s just pointless. The two additional tracks – “Sunny Forty Fours” and “Aho-Bomb” – are typical of early-decade Deerhoof material, with their falling-apart rhythms, random noise-bursts, and surprisingly melodic vocal parts. Interesting to hear them once, and that’s about it.

I gave up on Deerhoof long ago, but there are at least a few moments of hot bizarro rockin’ on the Reveille album that continue to get listens ’round these parts every once in a while (endless big yeahs for “The Magnificent Bird Will Rise”). Still, there was never enough consistent BOOM-BLAMF there to make me pay serious attention, and the vocalist had an unfortunate tendency toward cuteness – never so grating as when, during a show I attended, she made like she had paws and hopped around the stage chirping “Panda panda panda!” STOP THAT. Maybe things have changed for the better in the years and records since? I’m way out of the loop.