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Formats and Editions
1. Monkey See Monkey Do
2. Over Again
3. Phase Out
4. Waiting On Us
5. Ripple To Wave
More Info:
"Mumbojumbo? Hardly. Children, I'm here to testify on a stack of the Good ones that there ain't nary a bit of nonsense on this, the second Lalaland release. My educated guess says that the title of said EP is more a reference to the glorious mess called life seen through the darkly comic lenses of lyricist Tommy Mazzi. So screw you, Webster. Where to start? The band's debut release, "Ready? Ready!", sounded more like a studio experiment - drum machines instead of humans, some arguably precious keyboards and flowery production - that played fantastic counterpoint to Mazzi's terse tales of love and loss of all kinds and the lessons that we hopefully learn. This time around, Lalaland is a lean and mean band, with many live shows under it's belt and one less member (Lou Guerrero departed in early '06) The addition of Steve Sanders (who's got this punkrock marriage of Copeland and Keltner going on) is a varsity move, as he is consistently creative rhythmically all the while in servitude of the tunes. While Ruby Painter's bass amply supported Mazzi on "Ready?", she's got McCartney and Deal on her mind this time around the horn, combining big, dumb notes with wandering counterpoint and melody. That's my kinda girl. And I'd be a fool for a sentence if I didn't mention the perfect economy of Erik Wofford's dark, raw production, as it suits the band something mighty. Last and undeniably not least, Mazzi's words break my heart and pick up the pieces for another bullshit dogfight of a day tomorrow. Whether it's wondering aloud about our supposed evolution from our knuckle dragging days ("Monkey See Monkey Do"), appreciating daily treasures in the face of failure ("Over Again"), or having a sympathetic hand to hold during the peaks and valleys ("Ripple to Wave"), Mazzi's hammered on Lennon, Costello and Andy Partridge, among others, taking his ugly snapshots of this crazy joint and making them shine. Sometimes the nonsense of life is worth a close look, finding lights of humor and hope in the darkness. That's Lalaland's Mumbojumbo". - Chris Grady (Talent Buyer & Freelance Writer - Austin Texas)
