Kobanes – False Accusations

Right from the start though, you need to know that if you don’t like The Ramones, avoid The Kobanes like the plague. That, in a nutshell, is my review of the album as The Kobanes are the modern dayRamones. They ape the 77-punk rock style of the band to perfection and deliver an energetic, pogo-pound, three-chord punk onslaught through fifteen songs and close to forty-minutes.

The Queers, Screeching Weasel, The Fialky, The Descendents, these are all bands that come to mind as False Accusation plays through. Three chord punk rock, straight forward with intensity but a pop sensibility and choruses that get implanted in your brain instantly (seriously, who can forget “I miss my mullet! I miss my mullet!”), this is Ramones-core and damn fun front to back.

Lyrically, they’re a smorgasbord of influences. Just like the olden days of punk, they float between topics and never pigeon hole themselves. They are some stupid songs, the aforementioned I Miss My Mulletand Pizza Party are a one-two punch to kick off the album, that work to bring a smile to your face and help you to just have fun.  They’re love songs of a different nature (Don’t Say No is well worth a listen) or more conventional ones (New Boyfriend may be the best Queers song they never wrote). Songs like Riding In Vans (With Boys) and When Punk Was Fun extols the virtues of the underground scene and when they throw in the “woahs” like they do on Then She Got Married, the classic punk fan in me is in heaven.

There’s no argument here that The Kobanes are playing it safe. This isn’t going to change music and there’s a large chances that you’ll forget about it in a little while. But when it plays, False Accusationis really bloody fun. And that, I’m sure, is all he band ever wanted to do.