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"You're not gonna believe this, but this week I'm going to try to convince you that you might have room in your collection for yet another lo-fi boy/girl pop group. I've obviously got my work cut out for me, so here we go. Music like this is pretty tough to pull off, a fact that only makes Bonk Bonk Madi's accomplishment here more impressive. Even if you only consider the opener, "Moment Here, Moment Gone", there are a tremendous number of elements that could backfire on the group. First of all, the song is based on some of the most absolutely affectless guitar strumming in the history of popular music. Second, vocalist Meghan Bahn has one of those indie-rock girl voices that isn't really made for singing, and that gets along on its artlessness. Third, the song prominently features a toy piano. And yet, in spite of all of these negatives, the track coheres, and serves the all-important opening-track function of making you stick around for track two.
And that's where they're gonna getcha. The second track is "Captain America", which consists basically of a litany of comic book hero and villain powers possessed by the narrator, in spite of which "I still need you". A typical line: "Even though I shape-shift, have a snake-bite grip, get microscopic, I still need you. You're just so cool." You cannot resist this song. Do not try.
The remaining tracks range between Papas Fritas-like call and response ("Retired Ministers") and sad, evocative Field Mice-style ruminations ("5 Blocks Away"). More remarkably, Bonk Bonk Madi pull them all off.
There's almost no way (if you've been keeping up with the lo-fi, twee, or two-person-band trends over the past decade or so) that Bonk Bonk Madi's music will come as a stunning revelation to you. Indeed, your potential enjoyment of SeaSick is entirely dependent on how much you have enjoyed the music that has been produced by the aforementioned trends and bands. And it bears mentioning that certain elements, especially Ms. Bahn's voice, are probably going to be a love-them or hate-them affair for most listeners. Still, given all of those issues, if you find a place in your heart for a few more songs beautifully executed in a style that's quite difficult to pull off, get SeaSick. So to speak."
-- Brett McCallon
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(songs copyright 2004 Bonk Bonk Madi)
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