Prizzy Pleasing

Attention A&R reps for labels with nationwide distribution: SIGN THESE KIDS!\nFirst, let's make something perfectly clear: I'm not cutting Prizzy Prizzy Please any slack for being local. Nor do I have any personal stake in their success. (I've met lead singer-saxophonist Mark Pallman once, long enough to take a show flier from him.) I've seen the Prizzies three times in the last year and a half, but given that they play about 1,200 gigs in Bloomington every month, that's a paltry number. Thus, when I say that I think they have the talent to make a go at this rock 'n' roll stuff, I mean just that.\nSo, if you're not from Bloomington, or completely avoid the local music scene, what do the Prizzies sound like? To these ears, The Descendents crossed with Rocket From The Crypt and a slight dash of Bee Gees thrown in. Translation: Short, punchy punk with eccentric tongue-in-cheek lyrics (like The Descendents); but with bouncy, high-energy big-band-like instrumentals (saxophone, horn like RFTC); and the occasional deviation into falsetto, white-boy soul vocals (Bee Gees). Got all that?\nAt a mere 25 minutes and nine songs, the Prizzies' self-titled full-length debut flies by, but packs in more fun, memorable moments than many albums twice its length. These moments come in the form of the bold bass, drums, keyboard and sax run that opens the album's first track "Shorgasm;" the shout-along pogo of "Flea Bomb" or "Thundergust of Woodpeckers;" the fight song chronicling IU alumnus Aaron Waltke's world record for wearing the most T-shirts at once ("Too Many T-Shirts"); or pop-tastic tributes to disaster monkeys ("Captain Bob") and partying with Campfire Girls ("Campfire Girls' Weekend Party"). The only misstep comes with an ill-considered spoken-word intro to the otherwise terrific "Thought Command" that puts a speed bump in the album's momentum. But all-in-all, it's a mad, tremendously entertaining effort from a band that should be preparing to take on the world beyond Monroe County.