By ‘eck, these post-ironic (or should that be post-ironic core?) titles are just too funny. ‘Brace Yourself For The Mediocre’ is the new album from Roper, a super-group made up of Five Iron Frenzy and Divit members who play a brand of pop-punk that throws in some keyboards, metal tinged madness and even a bit of reggae-ska. I’ve never really known a band that can have an identity crisis as often as Roper, but given the musical make-up of the band I guess it’s not so surprising. Essentially Roper play a poppy brand of punk that is catchy in the short-term, but doesn’t really leave too much of a lasting impression. They sound a little like Yellowcard (minus the violin), while at time sprinkle some keyboards and reggae rhythms into the mix.
The record has 13 tracks over the course of more than 40 minutes, and you can probably count the number of genuinely good songs on one hand. ‘Hello Lamewads’ sounds a bit like Diesel Boy gone pop, while ‘You’re With Stupid’ is quite perky. Both tracks are also very reminiscent of Diesel Boy lyrically – ie they’re a bit daft. ‘Say Sayonara’ will have your feet tapping, while the band’s cover of the Shania Twain ‘classic’ track ‘You’re Still The One’ is certainly one to impress your mum. There are also moments that sound like different bands. ‘Red Eye To Miami’ sounds like a Rx Bandits cast off, while ‘1985′ could have been penned by Bowling For Soup.
Roper isn’t that bad a band, but there are certainly better acts out there at the moment. It’s no frills silly pop-punk and if that floats your boat then you’ll probably enjoy ‘Brace Yourself For The Mediocre’. Sadly there are too many tracks that don’t cut the mustard and while the cover song is amusing for the first few listens, over time it just begins to grate. Five Iron Frenzy fans will enjoy this, but the rest of us will probably get bored quite quickly.
www.roperisdumb.com
EMI Records
Paul