DAVID McATEE
City Times

“Humanimals”, the first official release from Grand Ole Party, captures and subdues the stomping wail of the drummer/singer Kristin Gundred led trio’s blues/scenester romp rock. The hectic energy of their live set is played down on the full length while finally giving people enough to sink their canines into.

The trio has made a major name for themselves in the past few years, putting off recording an entire album in favor of sets at the Whistlestop bar in South Park and the Casbah, not to mention the obligatory house parties, gallery openings, and street fairs.

The album’s opener, “Look Out Young Son”, kicks off the swagger with the declaration “I must be the devil’s daughter,” then drops into the much calmer “Belle Isle” to change it up drastically.

Strong points are the manic bad girl breakout “Insane”, which ends on the screaming chant spelling out the title over and over, and the straight-out-of-the-Rhythm-Hive “Gypsy March”, crying out “I was born in a swamp” as Gundred channels Ian Svenonius himself. Humanimals states its revolutionary insistence throughout, with lines like ‘it’s a call to arms’, ‘I pay my taxes/I spend my money/I’ve been a good girl/Where has it got me’, and the closer, ‘First comes chaos, then comes freedom’ blared with the conviction of a Pentecostal preacher.

With a full length under their belt, GOP can finally let the reputation they’ve earned spread without having to do the legwork every time.

Special thanks to Heather at M-Theory in Mission Hills. Visit www.mtheorymusic.com