By: Josh Parsons Septmber 18th, 2013
The Bats Pajamas have recently served up Just Ripe, a raucous and fuzzed-out appetizer of an EP. It’s a brief, brash and fun offering of contemporary garage-rock that would fit comfortably into the stereo of anyone expecting just that. The opening track, “You Get By”, sets the bristly tone of the EP within the first few bars and wastes no time drowning your ears in fuzz. The downbeat and surprisingly infectious tune was also the quartet’s choice for its latest video release and features a curious pastiche of Bollywood cut-ups.
Musical and lyrical themes are echoed throughout each track from the beginning of the EP, most notably on the albums churning closer, “Mass Telegrams”. It sounds comfortable, although some ideas occasionally wear thin past the two-minute mark. Another pitfall is a general oversaturation of distortion throughout. Although Just Ripe is packed with offbeat hooks and catchy choruses, it is unfortunate that too often they are submerged in echo and, at times, come off as muddled. Simplicity and repetition seem to be the mantra, as if The Bats Pajamas have burrowed into a cozy musical niche and decided to camp for the winter.
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