Let's clear up a few of those rumors flying around. First off, Logan Lee and The Dorkies is NOT a band in the traditional sense. In fact, they're not really a band at all, as they've never actually recorded any of the songs on this album. With that in mind, you soon realize that Logan did not write songs, but rather a bunch of poems. Now that I think about it, they're not even poems. I don't know how to really describe what Logan Lee has done to the English language. Maybe the phrase I'm looking for is "Tore it a new one."
Logan's style is something that has to be seen to believe. He almost always goes for the easy rhyme (blue/you, me/see, etc.) but he does it in a way where you would never guess the next rhyme. The average reader is quickly pulled into the small little world that is Logan's first semester. It's full of colorful characters that most of us would walk on the other side of the street to avoid. Such as Billy, the high school pal of Logan's that grew up to become a big porn star; Andy, that guy who is every girls worst nightmare; and even two people named Asshole and Slut, who Logan seems to call the typical American teenage couple.
Before I go into the review I think I should provide a bit of background. All of these songs (minus "Norman Bates' Mother," "Billy's a Porn Star," and "Asshole and Slut") were all written during Logan's first semester, and he likes to make us think that they're all true. I don't think anybody knows the real truth, but knowing the small bit that I do, I would dare to say that he's 90% right. Logan got into his first major relationship during that semester, and many of these songs reflect both sides of it. With all of this in mind, let's look at the songs.........
Logan opens with a song that immediately shows the audience what they're about to get into with "Nancy Feels Fine." This is The Dorkies theme for a reason. It reads almost like a table of contents, informing the audience of what the rest of the songs will be about. The next two songs, "I'm in Love (With Norman Bates' Mother)" and "Drivel on a Stick," both follow the same example. However, I think the message (and comedy) of "Asshole and Slut" will turn most readers off. The song, both a reference to "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" and Logan's first relationship, never reaches the point of telling the audience that it's a spoof or otherwise, leaving everybody slightly confused. The next four tracks, however, quickly pick up the pace. "Laughing Louder then the Rest" is one of those short simple rhymes that leave you wishing Logan would let you write the music. "Vanessa is a Giraffe," a direct stab at the relationship that inspired all of the songs, could have been written about any girl that has ever broken a guy's heart. "My Favorite Shows" is a nice comical "rap (?)" about missing your favorite TV shows because of a sour date. All of these songs, with comedic overtones and a pissed off attitude, are brought to a complete halt in the opening lines of the very serious "Chattanooga (It Happens)." Logan reminds us that in the end everything isn't as great as it may at first seem. This rather depressing (but well-meaning) song closes "Side One" on a rather sad note.
"Side Two" is played just for laughs, as the opening track, "The Bridge of the Song," which is literally just the bridge of a song, proves. It's followed by three more strong tracks, including attacks on love, sex, and most modern music. "The First Time I Got Paid" may bring new meaning to placing hidden messages in songs, and it's only appropriate that he follows it with the hilarious "Billy's a Porn Star Now," a funny take on old high school friends. The album returns once more to making a direct shoot-to-kill-with-comedy stab in "Andy." While I've never met the infamous main character of this song (and I doubt I would like to), I get the feeling that I've known him all my life after reading it. Finally, Logan closes the album with a song that he fears may be true, "28 Songs." Logan claims that while he wrote 28 songs, he's afraid that people will only find two of them worthwhile. There's also a rather nice line about Kevin Bacon, which only Logan could find a funny rhyme for.
Overall, I'm VERY impressed. Logan has promised to follow this album with, "The Melodramatic Return of David Watts" in early spring. He claims that the next set of songs should appeal to a bigger audience and won't focus on one, but SEVERAL good/bad relationships. I for one am counting down the days.
**** out of five
-Christina
Number of times Chevy Chase was mentioned: A RECORD SIX TIMES!
Number of badly hidden sexual jokes: I lost count.
Names of people you may know who cameo: Nancy, Ray Davies, Mary Tyler Moore, Kyle, Jason, Norman Bates, Backstreet Boys, Andy, Ben, Dave, Lucy, Paul, Zappa, James Taylor, Asshole, Slut, Vanessa, Larry, Darrel, Newhart, Jughead, Betty, Thom Yorke, Bjork, Prince, Michael Stipe, Kim, Chevy Chase, Billy, Susie, John Cusack, Paul, Steve, and Kevin Bacon.
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