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The Eastern seaboard suddenly has this slowly spreading, unexplainable obsession with incorporating hardcore influences into ska or vice versa. While the description on paper is probably wretch-worthy, there are plenty of bands who actually make it work at least somewhat well, such as Boston's Big D And The Kids Table, Jersey's Folly, and Long Island's ASOB (their older material, anyway). For anyone into the abovementioned bands, you may as well throw the Flaming Tsunamis on the list and into your rotation. Zombies Vs. Robots! is either the best parody of the symbols of an online "scene" or a stunningly well thought-out joke album. Whether it's both or none, the band's EP may not be the most musically cohesive piece of work ever, but lyrically, they stay right on the record's theme. Simply taking a gander at the track listing would give you that impression, with song names like "Dead Girlfriends Can't Break Up With You," "Refuse To Die," and a title track.

Also like most of the above, ska-punk may be primary with the core secondary, but the band mixes in other genres as well. The title track is an acoustic sea-chanty detailing the inspired battle of, well, zombies and robots; "the robots are coming our way / we attack in a pack with razor sharp teeth / and we bite and we hack but they don't taste like beef / oil thirsty zombies won't taste defeat / because we're forever at war." The closer "Opus" is a great fast-paced number drawing from Big D's faster tracks at first, slowing down for sloppy gang vocals, speeding up again, and then intervened by an exchange of upstroke-enforced horn solos and organ skittering, the last of which could've came right from Destruction By Definition, only to break down in an aggrandized fashion with group vocal shouts and wailing brass.

Zombies Vs. Robots! is a fun if not completely misdirectional release that keeps in mood with contemporary ska-punk mindsets, and will likely be dug by anyone who has a rough idea of what's to come despite the diverse scope of influence used.

MP3
Refuse To Die
STREAM
Opus



People who liked this also liked:
Against Me! - is Reinventing Axl RoseThe Slackers - PeculiarWorld/Inferno Friendship Society - Red-Eyed SoulYo La Tengo - I Am Not Afraid of You and I WIll Beat Your AssThe Flaming Tsunamis - Fear EverythingBomb the Music Industry! - Get WarmerGaslight Anthem - Sink or Swim



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    Posted by Cambodia on 2008-01-31 14:09:52

    i like them. there nice

    Posted by Anonymous on Monday, April 4, 2005 at 3:58 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    hipsters, scenesters, all that stuff, they all need to die. if i had three wishes one would be for mass death.

    Posted by Chason on 2005-03-30 20:15:11

    i'll tell ya who's gonna steal album title of the year. The Dean Malenkos' "Album That Turns Girls Into Sluts"

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, March 29, 2005 at 11:44 PM (EST)

    Haaaha, oh man. I was so scared for a moment.

    I thought it was going to be some crazy mash-up of The Flaming Lips' Yoshimi vs the Pink Robots and Tsunami Bomb or something like that.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, March 29, 2005 at 9:31 PM (EST)

    im boozing with the lead singer right now! wohhhhhhhhh

    Posted by iheartadam on 2005-03-29 20:32:43

    P.S. - Why don't people enjoy serial killers or necrophiliacs anymore? Why not Serial killers VS Baby rapers? Jesus this punk/alt/trendy lifestyle shit is lame.

    Posted by iheartadam on 2005-03-29 20:30:58

    Oh boy....this is everything with what's wrong with living in CT. Zombies Pirates nijas robots....my balls.

    Um....no score because of ties to band members family....but yeah, you won't see this in my scrobbles.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, March 29, 2005 at 7:05 PM (EST)
    My Score:

    Even though kung-fu, sci-fi, and zombie flicks are cool, what jones says is truth. Worst album title ever.

    Posted by stevejonestherealbones on 2005-03-29 17:48:54

    pirates, robots, ninjas, zombies.....

    saying that you like any of those four, as in "i love ninjas" or "i just love robots" or "zombies are sooo cool" or asking "who would win a fight between pirates and zombies?"

    saying any of that shit makes you a complete trendy bedwetter.

    - jones the bones

    - stevejones8770@yahoo.com

    - samurai vampires are rad

    Posted by Chason on 2005-03-29 17:35:47
    My Score:

    I really like this shit yo!

    Posted by ElVaquero on 2005-03-29 15:07:15

    Ninjas win.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, March 29, 2005 at 1:25 PM (EST)

    How the hell can a Tsunami be "flaming"? They can't be on fire (by physics alone), and I don't think they can be gay either.

    You're not like other people are you?

    Posted by sickboi on 2005-03-29 12:21:28

    How the hell can a Tsunami be "flaming"? They can't be on fire (by physics alone), and I don't think they can be gay either.

    Posted by thefirstfive on 2005-03-29 00:42:56
    My Score:

    I saw these guys with ASOB and Big D and they ripped it up live. They were a late add on to the show but they held there own. Their singer sets his horn on fire (dont remember what horn it was its late.) The best part of this record though is the amazing art. Look under the cd itself to see what I mean. Its just a well done package.

    Posted by stevejonestherealbones on 2005-03-29 00:23:47
    My Score:

    i kind of like this cd even though those are week ass robots on the cover and its kinda cheesy

    - jones the bones

    - stevejones8770@yahoo.com

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