Now I’ve pretty much heard everything. What do you get if you mix jazz, grind, ska, reggae, punk and hardcore together? The Flaming Tsunamis, that’s what! This US mob mix up some pretty heavy beatdowns and metal riffs with a little jazz and then, in the next breath, some Reel Big Fish-esque ska. It’s just totally frenetic and totally bizarre. And it doesn’t fit at all, sounds completely messy and horrible – yet strangely works in a compelling way. The Flaming Tsunamis are an absolute car crash of a band. There are ludicrously overblown guitar solos, bloodcurdling screams and the most uplifting of ska parts, with a woodwind section tooting away over the top, like Capdown on crack. And heroin. And Ketamine. All at the same time.
‘Fear everything’ is just a ridiculous record from start to finish. It has an insanely addictive ‘what happens next?’ quality which kept me listening from start to finish, even though I know full well I probably won’t ever dig this out again. But I really cannot criticise the band for doing something completely different as they do. I often write about bands ripping off their more famous bretheren and it’s refreshing to come across a band so out there as to mix several genres you just shouldn’t. And because ‘Fear Everything’ is such chaos, you feel compelled to listen. ‘Bird Watching and Vice Versa’ contains a bit of everything, from slow jazz to fast as fuck hardcore. And you have to credit The Flaming tsunamis for being imaginitive and interesting.
It’s just a shame there’s very little left after the car crash factor…