Hollerado?s re-released debut is pure fun in a bag

If Hollerado has become known for one thing, it is their unbelievable work ethic. In the past year they’ve opened for Jack White’s The Dead Weather, played seven shows a week for the entire month of February, toured China, and won $250,000 in a radio station battle of the bands contest. Now the Manotick, ON foursome will be releasing their debut, Record In A Bag &- for a second time. They originally released the album as a free download in 2009, but they’ve since decided it was time to put the album down on disk and vinyl.

The album opens with the haphazard live version of “Hollerado Land,” recorded at what sounds to be a house party. The same sort of raw aesthetic comes back on a couple of later tracks. “Hollerado Land” features a simple acoustic chord progression and hilariously cheesy campfire song lyrics (“Better not take a dip/in Alligator Pond/”cause then you’ll loose your arm”). It’s an odd start to an album and although there is always the risk of turning some people off from the very start, the track will at the very least bring a laugh or smile to someone.

The follow up, “Do The Doot Da Doot Do,” drops the stripped down acoustic act and dials up the seriousness a notch – a tiny notch. It’s quite easy to get caught up in the guitar riff and basic “do doo” chorus, showing Hollerado’s strength at writing power-pop tunes. They’re not in the least bit serious, but you can tell they truly love every ridiculous minute and are having fun throughout.

It would be impossible not to draw a parallel to Weezer after listening to the fourth track, “Fake Drugs.” It’s one of the standout tracks of Record In A Bag and carries the signature style of Rivers Cuomo. The Weezer parallel carries over to “Got To Lose” and it really would not be a stretch to imagine the track on Weezer’s Blue album.
The remainder of the album follows in a similar style: strong guitar riffs with choruses and verses that shouldn’t be taken too seriously.

It doesn’t take much time to work your way through the 12-track record. The album never takes a serious turn and when you pay even the slightest attention you’ll begin to pick up the occasional outlandish lyric (“You bring the granola bars/I’ll bring a bag to put the wrappers in”). Record In A Bag is, simply put, a fun and easy listen which is worth your time.

Trial Track: “Fake Drugs”

7/10

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