Flipp

(Hollywood)
by Sheril Stanford

Take Mike Ness’ vocals, delivered with John Lydon’s sneer, set ’em to Cheap Trick, geek chic style tunes, mix in the dirty glamour and glitz of the New York Dolls and you get… Flipp. Flipp first captured the imagination of the MTV generation by, well, appearing on MTV. But it wasn’t quite what you think. Flipp’s home-made video of their version of the Who’s “My Generation” never quite made it to the buzz bin. But lead vocalist Brynn Arens’ mud covered butt caused a bit of a buzz when it was beamed throughout the nation on MTV news. Seems Wisconsin’s Edgefest turned into a mud fest a la Woodstock II, and, what’s an enterprising rocker to do when, during his set, he’s threatened to be upstaged by mud? Why, he takes his pants off, of course. And thus history was made. So if, as their bio says, Flipp’s strength lies in their live performances, what makes them any different from any of the other bands who rock live but suck on record? Well, the disc isn’t half bad either.

Flipp says they want to put the “F-word” back in music. And they do – Flipp is provocatively, forcefully fun. They count down their songs “Fun, two, three, four” – which oughta tell ya something. Proving that humor can peacefully co-exist with acuity, Flipp offers the goofy three part punch of “Schizo Boy,” “I Don’t Care” and “Slag.” They’re so obviously having a good time, you can almost forgive them for lyrics like “I come unglued every time I think about you,” and “I’ll be your taxi cab, you can take me for a ride.” Addressed the right way, even suicide can be a fun topic. “Bleed” is a speedy, guitar-drenched homage to the Sex Pistols. And Flipp’s version of “My Generation” is a must-hear. They’ve taken a classic and made it more classic, if that’s possible, capturing the essence of the present in their oozing, trippy, spasmodic, pseudo-psychedelic delivery, lightly balancing humor and edge in one dripping package. Further proving that they’re more than one-dimensional, they offer the poignant “Change,” a thoughtful piece about homelessness.