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Epitaph Records -- Millencolin

So, Diesel Boy titled an album Sofa King Cool. Get it? It’s got a mediocre painting of two disgruntled faux-Teletubbies on the cover, and a letter inside supposedly from someone telling them they would be nobodies soon (which was hilariously prescient).

There’s a song about watching a girl undress through her window, a Dead Milkmen cover (“Punk Rock Girl”), plenty of drug references and self-referential humor and a song that directly rips off NOFX. But, as hard as it may be to believe, it wasn’t released on Fat Wreck in the nineties.

Okay, it was released on Honest Don’s.

But there’s something so undeniably FUN about this disc that I can’t ever stop listening to it. It sounds like if Goldfinger had integrity. I know that’s a stretch for any imagination to conceive, but that’s the best description of Sofa King Cool. I could never fault anyone for hating this record or expect anyone to like it, but I know that some will love it.

“She’s My Queen” has some great lines in it, and the wordplay in “A Literary Love Song” (“I need your plagiarism. You give great definition.”) is great, even if it is somewhat crude. The guest vocals (and I won’t tell you who) on “All About the Abes” are one of the highlights of this album. The penultimate song on the album, a midtempo letter to John Lennon, aptly titled “Dear John,” shows that this band can, however, write mature songs when they want to (something they would do admirably with the song “Big Sparkling New” off of Sofa King Cool’s followup, Rode Hard and Put Away Wet)

Honestly, if I hadn’t stumbled across this album for free a few years ago, I would have continued to write it off, despite the band’s fantastic showing on the Short Music for Short People CD. As a critic, I could honestly say more negative things than positive about this album, but it’s so enjoyable that I ignore my cynicism whenever it’s on. If you’re looking for the next album that will change your life, look elsewhere, but if you want something stupid and awesomely entertaining, with songs you can shout along to, pretending you’re still in high school, Sofa King Cool is what you need.



People who liked this also liked:
NOFX - The DeclineLatterman - ...We Are Still AliveAgainst Me! - Americans Abroad!!! Against Me!!! Live in London!!!The Falcon - UnicornographyAlkaline Trio - Alkaline TrioThe Lawrence Arms - The Greatest Story Ever ToldThe Lawrence Arms - Cocktails And DreamsThe Evens - Get EvensSundowner - Four One Five TwoPropagandhi - Less Talk, More Rock



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    Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, August 19, 2006 at 10:27 PM (EDT)

    this band can't be summed up in an album and that saddens me because their good songs are good and they're bad songs are just boring and atrocious.

    Oh well I still have my guns and wankers.

    Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, August 17, 2006 at 7:28 PM (EDT)

    shit cover, shit music, shit lyrics, shit label......shit.

    Posted by DarrenMcLeod on 2006-08-17 16:03:59

    I assumed this band broke up, but last month when I was in Victoria they were playing a show in a bar. I didn't go, though.

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, August 16, 2006 at 12:16 PM (EDT)

    i always thought venus envy was their best, this one was pretty hit and miss.

    wasn't '10,000 cigarettes' on this album? I think that was my fav if I remember right. I haven't listened to diesel boy in 5 years.

    Paul

    Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, August 16, 2006 at 11:44 AM (EDT)

    I love that song stroking my cat.

    Posted by branden on 2006-08-15 22:21:26

    yeah buddy, great band

    Posted by Skanknsmile on 2006-08-15 21:07:25

    jen burns and bracket marty are the guest vocals on all about the abes.

    spoils.

    Posted by Scruffy on 2006-08-15 19:34:30

    Yeah, "Rode Hard And Put Away Wet" isn't very good, with the exception that the above-mentioned "Big Sparkling New" is one of the best songs ever.

    Posted by Andycazzo80 on 2006-08-15 19:23:33

    GREAT FUCKIN'BAND!!!!

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, August 15, 2006 at 6:32 PM (EDT)
    My Score:

    Great band, whatever happened to them?

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, August 15, 2006 at 4:10 PM (EDT)

    I downloaded so many Dieselboy tracks off of Napster back in the day hoping they were unreleased Diesel Boy tracks.

    Posted by Enemy_Will on 2006-08-15 15:59:12
    My Score:

    So... should we start bothering to review old releases now?

    Anyways, Diesel Boy sure had their moments and then they just sort of dissapeared. Best albums, in order:

    1. Venus Envy (brilliant)
    2. Cock Rock (rocking)
    3. their split with Divit (3 really good songs)
    4. Sofa King Cool (pretty good in a different way)

    (and i shouldn't have to mention the miserable piece of shit that was Rode Hard, Put Away Wet. By this time they were literally recycling songs. "Thirty" rhymes "dirty," true, yet this is a rhyme that should not be employed more than once.)

    Posted by ChokingVictim on 2006-08-15 15:55:27

    This band is fun. That's all there really is to it, I guess.

    Posted by jockmcbored on 2006-08-15 13:09:59
    My Score:

    prefer Rode Hard...

    The Dead Milkmen cover is the best on here. Diesel Boy songs tend to have the potential to be great but then fall away as much as Pulley songs

    Posted by notfeelingcreative on 2006-08-15 11:38:04

    " diesel boy is good, but i do think their albums got progressively worse. you can't beat cock rock."

    Agreed, 'cock rock' was a consistently good record 'true drew', 'titty twister', 'punk rock 101', man I gotta find where I put that cd!"

    Posted by AnEpicProblem on 2006-08-15 11:26:30
    My Score:

    I've always had a soft spot for Diesel Boy. Although the only album of theirs I bought was Rode Hard, I had Sofa and Venus on tape. I have to say that Sofa is the much better album of the two: no skippable tracks, pretty funny lyrics, and a good variety between songs. Although I would've given this album an 8 just two years ago, I think I'll be a little more realistic nowadays...

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, August 15, 2006 at 10:53 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    venus envy is the album with the sex hidden track. and a good hidden track it is. diesel boy is good, but i do think their albums got progressively worse. you can't beat cock rock.

    Posted by kirbypuckett on 2006-08-15 09:22:03
    My Score:

    I enjoy this band a lot.

    Is this record or Cock Rock that has the audible sex as the hidden track?

    When I was 16/17 I took my car to get an oil change and we left that track on in the cd player and turned the volume up real loud. Then, we put a tape recorder under the seat to see what the mechanics would say.

    I wish I still had that recording -- it was pretty amusing.

    - Kirby

    Posted by ramo on 2006-08-15 09:22:01
    My Score:

    I liked this album back when I heard it. Just some crafty pop punk.

    Ramo

    Posted by almightydanish on 2006-08-15 09:17:47

    Nevermind, I'm a dumbass.

    Posted by almightydanish on 2006-08-15 09:17:24

    I guess you aren't aware of the connection between Honest Dons and Fat.

    Posted by Scruffy on 2006-08-15 08:16:15

    ""She's My Queen" is pretty good, and their cover of "Punk Rock Girl" is spot on."

    "She's My Queen" is rad, but the fact that they replaced "Mojo Nixon" with "G.G. Allin" in "Punk Rock Girl" really bothers me, mostly because it required changing the next line, and it sounds worse.

    Posted by almostpunkenough on 2006-08-15 04:24:15
    My Score:

    'Cock Rock' was better. this is still awesome though.

    Posted by Cos on 2006-08-15 02:14:46

    WORST. BAND. EVER.

    I saw this band as an opening act way too many times in SF and they were never good. The best was seeing them open for the Ataris, and someone hit the lead singer in the face with a beer. Dude didn't even react, just kept staring straight and played on.

    What a wuss.
    --Cos

    Posted by greyicewater on 2006-08-15 01:56:06

    remember when they were on an episode of Freaks and Geeks? that was such a good episode. i loved that show. it should have lasted longer.

    Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, August 15, 2006 at 1:01 AM (EDT)
    My Score:

    great album. can't give any diesel boy less than a 9. this is good pop/punk. i wish this band never went away.

    Posted by sickboi on 2006-08-15 01:00:43
    My Score:

    Score is for the track "Sofa King" on the Danger Doom album.

    Posted by GreenVandal on 2006-08-15 00:49:37

    They are better when they play breaks beats and aren't this band.

    Posted by TheRhetoric on 2006-08-15 00:45:37

    The song on "Short Music For Short People" set my expectations too high for this band, anything I heard after could never compete... god that songs good

    Posted by GlassPipeMurder on 2006-08-15 00:41:56
    My Score:

    "She's My Queen" is pretty good, and their cover of "Punk Rock Girl" is spot on.

    Posted by stevejonestherealbones on 2006-08-15 00:33:46

    cock rock was a great album, i never got around to this one though, this came out in the time when i was kinda changing genres, sold all my shitty punk band cds and bought a lot of nsync/spears kinda stuff

    - jones the bones

    - stevejones8770@yahoo.com

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