“A tad off kilter” is the ideal way to describe Farewell Continental’s iHey Hey Pioneers!,the group’s debut full-length on Paper + Plastick Records. The brainchild of Justin Pierre— uh, Dr. Richard Kimball— the record is a schizophrenic forty minutes of experimental pop-rock that falls somewhere between “that sounds a heck of a lot like Motion City Soundtrack!” and “wow…so that just happened.” Yet ultimately iHey Hey Pioneers! rocks.
Dr. Richard Kimball is joined by Allie Fox (vocals, keyboard), Rick Deckard (guitar), Norman Spencer (bass), and Jack Ryan (drums). Combing duel male-female vocals, eclectic arrangements, and weird lyrics, Farewell Continental are certainly not Motion City Soundtrack, although one would be remised if they failed to assert that at points iHey Hey Pioneers! does have that classic Motion City sound (and often times, those are the high points of the record). There is just an unfortunate amount of filler riddle throughout the album.
The first half of iHey Hey Pioneers! is certainly superior to the latter half. “Capybara” showcases Fox’s voice as she croons over an unpretentious guitar progression before Dr. Kimball breaks in to complement Fox’s shining vocals on the track’s fuzzy chorus. The album’s first single, “Who’s The Boss,” is an aggressive track with frantic guitars and drums. “The Greatest Of All Time (How You Feelin’ Now?)” is an odd song where Fox and Dr. Kimball go back and forth singing, “tell me I’m the greatest of them all // do you forgive me // yes possibly maybe // do you think we’ll make it out alive // we’ll never make it // no we’ll never make it.” The moments when the duo feeds off of each other are the most memorable aspects of the record.
The momentum the first four songs build is quickly dampened by “Dagger, Dagger: Terror, Terror” and “A Story From The Bottom Of The Sea.” The former begins, oddly enough, in the guise of an upbeat Death Cab For Cutie track with Dr. Kimball’s voice distorted over a pleasant bass groove. Yet, “Dagger, Dagger” is brought down by a cluttered chorus that is neither catchy nor sophisticated (and certainly not Death Cab approved). The latter finds Dr. Kimball attempting his best tenor voice which, unfortunately, comes off as cliché and, to put it bluntly, creepy.
The best tracks on the record are certainly the toned-down “New Tile Floor” and the rousing “Radio, Radio: Are You Getting This.” “New Tile Floor” has an amusing electronic vibe that drives the track before both Dr. Kimball and Fox join forces for the chorus in a delectable exemplar of pop harmonization. Pierre described “New Tile Floor” as being about “a love affair between two humans, their alcohol, and carpentry tools…it’s definitely our most danceable number.” If “New Floor Tile” is Farewell Continental’s most “danceable” track, then “Radio, Radio: Are You Getting This” is their most accessible. The Motion City comparison is certainly fitting for “Radio, Radio,” as the track has quirky electronic elements and fast-paced guitars. Dr. Kimball even busts into a spoken-word dialogue in the middle (do not fret, though, it works).
The album closes with a series of songs that are slightly compelling, but ultimately mediocre (except the two-minute freak-out that is “Mad Operator,” whose brilliance is found in its short length and chanting chorus). The issue with the final group of songs is that they are flat-out boring. Sure, they are decent, but when compared with the peculiarity of the previous songs, they come off as either insipid (“The Reflecting Skin”) or redundant (“The Explorer Settles Down” and “I Feel Everything (Can You Feel It As Well?)”). Despite the weak ending, iHey Hey Pioneers!’s unpredictability makes it one amusing listen. Or better yet, iHey Hey Pioneers! is simply fun; which is precisely what Dr. Kimball and his gang of misfit-soldiers were aiming for in the first place.
**.5/*****
*This review was composed by Mike Meeze
