Remember Local H? Well, they had one good song with Fritz's Corner, but otherwise the two-man jam band didn't really do anything worthwhile. It's pretty easy to layer things when recording, but keeping things sounding full during a live show when you only have two guys can be an exercise in futility.

Unless you don't suck which Local H, sadly, did.

Mayhaps they needed to funk out? There's never enough funking out. Scarberian motherfunkers The Carps, who are holding a free EP launch party and show tonight, mix hip-hop with heavy (fat-hop?), and give us a different kind of funk-metal than the Faith No More/RHCP stuff we already heard ten years ago.

- The Carps MySpace page, with 4 tracks

It isn't too difficult to hear the mixture that comprises The Carps' sound. You've got your hip-hop, RnB, and soul with Tongue's vocals, you get the raw bass from the funk-metal era, tight and often brutal percussion, and a general lack of over production from two guys who manage to fill your speakers as well as The White Stripes manage to.

Some people (myself included) would say that the last thing the world needs is another drummer who thinks he can sing. Jahmal Tongue fudges with that notion over the four tracks The Carps have available on their Myspace page.

All the Damn Kids is the page's lead-off track. What pedals does bassist Neil White use? He has gives us one of the more convincing synth-y sounds I've heard come out of a bass amp aside from some of Les Claypool's work on with Oysterhead. Speaking of which, this track definitely has that grotesque bass tone that I dug so much on Primus albums like Pork Soda and The Brown Album. Repeating bass line, check. Thrashy drums, check. Blue jeans baby, check.

Compton to Scarboro is about a mother fucking gun. The Carps make sure you're well aware of that. As with All the Damn Kids, Compton to Scarboro features the ugly-ish bass with some tight percussion. Singer Jahmal Tongue does both the pissed off rap thing, as well as the soul.-ish/RnB thing. It's pretty interesting to hear, I tell ya.

All the Thugs I Know reminds me that nothing makes me happier than a bass with just the right amount of fuzz on it. Jahmal's voice is really reminding me of someone whom I can't recall, but I guess that means it isn't reminding me of anything... it makes sense to me. A lot of name dropping in this track; even Joy Division gets a nod. It's a nice example of how to have a very full sounding chorus with a minimal amount of actual instruments involved in the recording.

Trackademics is the last track, and is a remix by someone; I can't tell who because MySpace cuts the track name off... JJ-something-or-other. None of the trademark The Carps sound in this one aside from Tongue's vocals which sound relatively untouched. A syncopated beat prevails throughout, which I imagine would be a bitch for any drummer to sing along with. Cheese-o synth abounds. For someone reason I keep imagining a soda-shoppe diner, which I think is brought on by a little quick burst synth chord that repeats. Retro feel to this, kinda Felix Da Housecatty without sounding anything like him.

It's a shame actual rap-rockers Bionic Jive couldn't manage to gain any momentum after their stellar showcase on that old Farm Club show, but The Carps prove that hope isn't lost in fat-hop (ya, that's what I'm damn well calling it from now on). Aside from the fact that their launch party tonight is both free and free, it's worth coming out just to see bassist Neil White's crazy effin' hair bobbing around while he mops the floor with his body. Wonder wtf I'm talkin' aboot? The YouTube video below has the answers you seek...

The Carps "The Young & Passionate Days of Carpedia CD Release Party"
March, 1 2007 at Ukula
492 College Street at Palmerston Boulevard (2 blocks past Bathhurst)
416-619-9282
Cost : FREE

Check out Lacerda, featured previously on Theirspace