I saw Me First and the Gimme Gimmes live for the first time at Fest 9 a few months back, and it was OKAY, I GUESS. When I first discovered them in 9th grade, I thought it was some incredible shit and the best thing in the world, and I owned the 'Ruins Johnny's Bar Mitzvah" CD and everything. Then, within like a month or so of this love, it kind of just died. My sister and my friend always listened to them pretty nonstop, and have their CDs and what not, and it just didn't do anything for me for some reason. I mean, it's just cover songs...but most of what I do with my spare time is cover songs, so I should like that it's just cover songs, right? I think my reason for covering songs is that I wish I wrote the songs, and that's part of what makes covering songs fun for everyone involved in the process. But, I don't think the audience has nearly as much fun as the band does. However, their stage banter is what made them fun to see. I mean, this is also why Nofx puts on a good live show, too. Maybe it's my love for standup comedy, or something. I don't know.
The point is, the Me First and the Gimme Gimmes Go Down Under EP is exactly what it sounds like. It's a short release of them covering songs by Australian musicians. If you're ready to have your mind blown...you should lower your standards by a lot first, and plunge right into this new record from the Fat Wreck fat cats, the Gimme Gimmes.
It starts off sounding like another addition of Love Their Country, because it basically is. The country has just become Australia. The main problem with me listening to these guys, is the fact that I most of the time do not know the originals of the songs they cover. This also means I could just pretend these are instead just shitty songs they personally wrote. The first song on the EP is "Never Tear Us Apart" by people I've never heard of. Why isn't there a fucking Living End cover on this bitch?
Okay, "All About Love" is a song I know, and one thing I know about it, is that the original doesn't start off as Rise Above by Black Flag, but I also know it probably should've. I love this song...and I actually like the original more. Fuck. This cover is actually pretty rad though, I'm just not a fan of Spike's vocals. I mean, the coolest part of Me First is that Joey Cape is in the band, and he only plays rhythm guitar really, so it hardly matters on the record that he is, just live. this is the best cover on hre, by far.
The leads on the Easybeats cover "Friday On My Mind" are actually pretty sweet and perfectl hidden under the rest of the music. It's my favorite part of the record, instrumentally, and also the only thing worth mentioning about this track. Then there's a cover of a song by the chick from Grease, and it once again makes me wonder why there's not a Living End cover on here. I mean, they're not an old band, I know. But haven't Me First covered something as recent as the 90s before? Probably not, I honestly wouldn't know at all.
The album ends with "I've Done Everything For You", which is another one that I actually know. And, unlike the previous one I knew, I prefer the Gimme Gimmes cover over the original for this one. They do a pretty awesome job with this one, and it's something I could picture life. Other than the fact that I was super tired by the time Me First played at Fest, and my feet were sore and I didn't care that they were playing, but my friend who was driving us really wanted to see them. So I mean, I have to thank them for having comedic stage banter to keep me remotely interested. Good looks, bro. Either way, this EP is what it is. It's a cover album, and they're creative with their shit, so you'll enjoy it if you're into them. I almost enjoyed it, even.
-Idle
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