2/5
The thing about Eddie Argos’s singing is that, well… it isn’t. Which is fine when he’s fronting the ace Art Brut: there his unmusical utterances are backed up by a gang of skilled rock musicians with mad riffs. But this side project is made with girlfriend Dyan Valdés of indie kids The Blood Arm and the result is considerably less than we’d hoped for.
Seemingly made on a shoestring budget, Fixin’ the Charts’ twee melodies and flat production just aren’t enough to support Argos’s vocals. Art Brut’s drums and guitars galvanise him; here, synth-organs and sampled hand-claps leave him high and dry. Even his lyrics are less inspired than usual, though not without the odd chuckle.
It’s not all bad. The basic idea – each song is a response to a tune by someone else – is fun, even if some of the links are tenuous. Defending the love child from ‘Billie Jean’ in ‘Billie’s Genes’ is inspired, but turning The Mamas and the Papas’ ‘Creek Alley’ into the WWII-based ‘Creeque Allies’ is a stretch. And yeah some, like ‘G.I.R.L.F.R.E.N’ from Avril Lavigne’s ‘Girlfriend’), are catchy, but this is weak sauce considering the talent.
Available now online.
