Bad Rabbits
Stick Up Kids

Release Date: 2009 | Tracklist

Bad Rabbits were a rather inauspicious band to be opening for Glassjaw when I saw them at Maxwell's in New Jersey on 12/23/09. Out of the the five bands on the bill, they definitely stood out like a sore thumb; amidst a bunch of indie and wannabe post-rock groups - one in particular cashing in on a particular band member ("Oh hi we're Sainthood Reps and there's a guy from Brand New in our group and did we mention we're from Long Island?"), Bad Rabbits were playing straight-up 80's throwback soul/funk/R&B with a delicious pop twist, kinda like mixing Prince and the Minneapolis sound with P-Funk and Michael Jackson with modern pop sensibilities. And make no mistake, it rocks. Despite the music being decades old, Bad Rabbits serve up the funk with a freshness not seen in a long time. Opener "Booties" sounds like a modern take on Bobby Brown's "On Our Own" while the vintage keyboard samples bring out your inner High-Tops kid. "Stick Up Kids" starts out with what could be an almost post-hardcore chord progression before going into an awesome dancey keyboard/guitar vamp. "Can't Back Down" combines 80's Minneapolis with tight funk riffs and a huge rock outro, with high-pitched falsettos and lush faux-keyboard to great effect.

And these guys are really talented. All the keyboard you hear on this record are actually guitar riffs passed through a pedalboard! That's ***ing awesome dude. Singer Fredua Boakye is probably the closest we'll get to a Baby Prince with his awesome, soulful falsetto and undeniably vintage vocal melodies. Guitarists Salim Akram and Santiago Araujo serve up faux-keyboard lead lines and tight funk upstrokes and riffage that constitute the musical highlight of Stick Up Kids. Point is, it's so fun and vintage you can't help but love it. And make no mistake, as good as the EP is it simply does NOT compare to hearing them live - they're much better. Expect big, big things in the future.

This EP is offered as a free download on the band's Myspace. Here is the link: http://www.sendspace.com/file/1gxqih

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4 excellent

Rank: #79 for 2009