Unusual Suspects
WAAF Exclusive Live Studio Recordings (Restaurant Records)
by Sheril Stanford
Let’s be honest. When I’m in the mood to listen to Boston radio, WAAF is not my station of choice (although it does have its own preset button on my radio). I guess I’m just not a member of the station’s key demographic — I’m not a guy and I’m not an adolescent. Even if I was, I’m not sure I’d appreciate the “humor” that makes up over half of the 22 tracks on this WAAF compilation, Unusual Suspects. For instance, two AM DJs reach “Gilligan’s Island” icon Tina Louise by telephone. They are obnoxious, she is gracious. They finally convince her to “come on, please, answer just one question, just one, please?” She finally consents. And what is that one question? “When was the last time you got laid?” Puh-leeze! I’m sorry, but that’s just plain juvenile, to say nothing of being a crushing disappointment after a major build-up. It was neither cute, clever or funny. And that’s the FIRST cut on the disc — it goes downhill from there. A caller phones in and in his charming Boston accent tells how he was making out with some girl he’d just met only to discover that she was, in fact, a he. The whole thing just reeks of sexism and homophobia. Both the caller and the on air personalities come off sounding small-minded and viscous. There is one funny bit, however, when a caller hoping to win tickets identifies another Boston station, MIX 98.5, as her favorite radio station. Now THAT deserves a chuckle! Proceeds from this disc benefit the Greater Boston Food Bank — I wonder if they had any idea…
Well, on to more pleasant topics. The music. There’s really a few choice cuts on Unusual Suspects, mostly live studio recordings (too bad all that on-air patter detracts from the flow of the music…). ANYWAY, the disc features the formerly ever present “Counting Blue Cars,” by the impeccably earnest Dishwalla, as well as a blues influenced and spare “Spyder” from the irreverent Imperial Drag. God Lives Underwater contributes a stripped down, clenched jaw, clenched fist version of “All Wrong.” A personal favorite is the happy beat, ultra poppy Refreshments tune “Down Together,” with low key, off beat lyrics like “Cars break down and people break down, and other things break down, too…” and “We can all make our hair real big and pretend we’re from Rhode Island…”
On the less positive side, there’s “Immortal,” by the Beth Hart Band, which sorta sounds like Janis Joplin with no fire and no soul, even though ol’ Beth’s trying real hard to have both. Then there’s the Nixon‘s “Sister,” on which the Nixons come off sounding like a faux sensitive version of Guns n’ Roses. Or something. Okay, maybe that bit about Tina Louise isn’t really so bad. All things being relative, of course.
