Eddie, Old Bob. Dick And Gary

Tenpole Tudor's music is so defiantly silly and raucous that it would be easy to dismiss if it wasn't quite so fun. Taking the punk aesthetic to an extreme, no one in Tenpole Tudor, particularly lead vocalist Eddie Tudor, can sing at all, so each song turns into a drunken, noisy singalong. And most of these songs are singalongs, filled with rousing choruses, big hooks, and clattering chords that are messy and infectious. What's surprising about the group's debut album, Eddie, Old Bob, Dick & Gary, is how many flat-out excellent songs are on the record. Combining ridiculous swords-and-sorcery imagery with laddish party anthems, nearly half of the record is invigorating, noisy rock & roll, with the boozy "Swords of a Thousand Men," "Wunderbar," "Three Bells in a Row," "I Wish," and "There Are the Boys" standing out among the clatter. The rest of the album isn't quite as good, but it has reckless charm that makes Eddie, Old Bob, Dick & Gary a thrillingly primitive rock & roll record.