Does anyone remember the old group Trixster?  Well I don't.  The reason I may have forgotten about them is because they weren't memorable or very good.  So what does a non-memorable 80s glam-rock band do when it can't find jobs in the new millennium?  Simple!  Become an equally less memorable power-pop group!  The music business sure is easy! 

40 Ft. Ringo has a sound that is exactly like, well, every single other rock band I hear.  Anyone sick of Blink 182 or the rest of the laughable "power-pop" genre will hate 40 Ft. Ringo.  "If its worth your while, put on a big fat, put on a big fat smile."  The preceding sentence is the extent of their mastery of the lyrical arts.  I am disgusted. Reviewing this album was more of a tedious chore than a pleasing escapade into new musical ventures.  

But like a nun wading through a sandstorm consisting of equal parts sand and razor blades, I continue listening.  I take solace in the fact that the singer can hold a note and the power chord riffs aren't predictable whatsoever.  Hang on.  That thing about the power chords in the last sentence: that was a lie.  Each track averages about 3:30, allowing enough time for the same repetitions of chorus line and verse. By ending right at the right time, the song avoids becoming too lengthy for the American pop radio audience.

Bonus note: I thought that the final track, titled "Hopeless" would be the standard slow somber song at the end of the rock album.  I was pleasantly surprised to hear some slightly faster BPM and lack of acoustic guitar.  Looks like they broke the mold in one(1)(uno) case.  The track "Jerkoff" is probably the most formulaic, standard, Blink182 rip-off-ish song I've heard...ever.  The other tracks really aren't worth commenting on honestly.

At least some other groups in the "power  pop" genre have something that really sticks out.  I view 40 Ft. Ringo as the equivalent of Blink 182 and Third Eye Blind's little cousin who didn't quite grow as tall as his other family members and as a result got his ass kicked by his older cousins, cookies shoved in his mouth by vindictive family members, and taunted at the dinner table during a big holiday party.  Nevertheless, undaunted by their generic rock sound, 40 Ft. Ringo continues to press on to make new material, much to my (and I'm sure the majority's) dismay.
 
 
Sure to please: Power-pop fans
Sure to disappoint: Metal fans, country music fans, anybody who plays music themselves, rap fans, techno fans, salsa fans, dogs, cats, reptiles, me, etc.
 
 

• Visit the Official website.
• Listen to samples and Purchase this CD online

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