Album #54 : Electric Six - Fire

Electric Six

Fire (2003)

On one of my journeys to Tasmania with three of my mates on a beer-finding mission (by the way, James Boag's, we were happy that you sent Boag's Draught to the mainland but Y U NO STRONGARM BITTER???) this album formed part of the soundtrack of the journey. I remember very little other than the lyrics were hilarious and the riffs in-your-face.

And, of course, there's Gay Bar, one of the most outstanding songs in rock history.

But what else does this album have? Why is it still one of the most outstanding debut albums in history? And why does it continue to hang over Electric Six, a constant reminder of an age past, where songs about NUCLEAR WAR and FIRE and DANCING were a much needed part of the musical landscape?

Let's find out today.

The Album

Will you laugh when listening to Fire? Absolutely. Frequently. There's a reason why some consider their schtick here to be comedy rock - when you're opening tracks with the line, "I was born a prisoner in your dungeon of fish", urging people that they MUST OBEY THE DANCE COMMANDER, telling people that IMPROPER DANCING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET means that "somebody better notify the chief of police", and openly promising that "I've got something to put in you" in a song called Gay Bar, well......clearly there's an element of humour there. A MASSIVE, highly common element.

Don't let that fool you, though. This is pumping, high octane, high energy dance/disco/funk/rock fusion. The riffs are crunchy and powerful, the tempos are lightning quick and there's plenty of hi-hat intensive disco beats. Tying it all together is the undeniable gravitas of bandleader and vocalist Dick Valentine. He has the perfect vocal for this style of music because he is completely serious (or deadpan) and equally high voltage.

There are cracking songs aplenty. The aforementioned Gay Bar is simply brilliant; the riffs burrow into your head and refuse to leave and the lyrics are genius - Valentine implores you to 'start a war/start a nuclear war/at the gay bar' and you have no idea what he means but YOU ARE GOING TO GO AND DO IT. Improper Dancing is classic funk/disco with all the trappings - groovy bass, drums and guitar combining to create a dancefloor filler. There's continued comedy gold with Valentine's "STOP. CONTINUE!" as he orders the music to bend to his will. Danger (High Voltage!) is more great disco rock, with a Jack White (yes, THE Jack White) guest lead vocal and even a smooth sax solo. Dance Commander, I'm The Bomb, She's White....all great hard rocking disco-tinged dance party tracks.

There's also a track called Naked Pictures Of Your Mother. Dick Valentine tells us he's got 'naked pictures/of your mother/naked pictures of your mother/naked pictures/of your mother GO!' and at no stage are you disgusted by this. You are, in fact, SCREAMING IT AT THE TOP OF YOUR LUNGS.

It takes a rare talent to have people screaming lyrics like that at the top of their lungs while dancing around like lunatics. Dick Valentine is such a man with such a talent. 

The Verdict

Acting like some sort of strange mixture of Kiss and Andrew WK, Fire is a burst of energy to the senses. It breathes life into a long-dead and hardly lamented musical style, and makes it sound vital, relevant and fresh again. Yeah, at times it's fucking hilarious. And yeah, we still don't know exactly how one starts a nuclear war on the dancefloor. But Electric Six made an album that's close to the quintessential party rock album. Fuck those douchebags in LQERDGDTDBDWERTGOAOAO or whatever, they are mere pleb scumbags, sucking on the discarded flotsam of Electric Six with their "Party" "Rock" "Anthem".

You want a real "party rock anthem"? Put on Fire. ALL OF IT.

My rating: ****

Standout Tracks

Gay Bar

Improper Dancing

She's White

Tomorrow, we take a trip back to the 60s to listen to some classic folk rock sounds.