Record review

Eclectic Honey

3 Feb 2003

Stoat and Friends

Opening track I Wish I Was Stoned, half sounds like a proletarian battle-cry and half like an en masse karaoke competition in the Central Hotel - you never can tell exactly what Stoat are up to. On further reflection it's probably more of the latter with a dash of the former. Gathering over 50 people to sing the chorus of one of your songs almost seems bizarre until you remember that this is Stoat - the band who brought us such classics as Boys and Girls and Oh Happy Day. Doing strange things seems perfectly ordinary to them. So much so that the other two tracks are more than a bit surprising, even though they are not Stoat songs but rather penned solely by bass player Cormac Parle. Music for Emergencies reaffirms the piano's status as the new king of rock. That's right - smash your guitars up on stage and grab a Steinway. Well maybe not just yet. I Wrote This to Woo You is another beautiful piano instrumental, and also completely different to the collective Stoat's compositions, but just as good. In fact it's probably the highlight of the single, in spite of that stunning opening foray into communal pop-rock singalong territory.

Stoat are undoubtedly our comical heroes, slagging off the jobs in McDonalds that we all hate and the tongue in cheek references that can't help but make you smile when you're stuck sitting in Dublin Bus' luxury accommodation in congested streets. 'Stoat and Friends' leaves you wondering just what this band can possibly come up with next to outdo 50 people singing in a bar (and believe me they will). It leaves you wondering just how many more singles (this is number 4) they are going to release before an album comes along? But ultimately it leaves you wondering, is 'Stoat and Friends' the biggest band in the world?

[Original article: http://www.eclectichoney.com/stoat3.html]