Today is the day that the long-anticipated Operation Ivy tribute Mooorree Than Just Another Comp is released. Sell the Heart Records and Lavasock Records kindly sent TGEFM a promo copy which we dove into for another of our track-by-track discussions. Find out what a bunch of opinionated folk think about the tribute in part 1, covering the first eleven songs on the comp. Parts 2 and 3 will be out later today.
First off… the comp!
(note- we have very little control which track starts first in the embed… that’s a Bandcamp thing)
01) Danger INC. – “Knowledge”
Jeff Sorley (TGEFM founder / head editor [aka- headitor]) – Before I even get to discussing any of these songs, I’ve listened to the album once through already and I feel I’ve gotta say this: the moment every bass player heard this was happening their eyes probably lit up like fireworks. One of the many virtues of Op Ivy is that Matt Freeman’s bass lines are so… Exuberant? Exciting? Just plain fun? The rhythm section of Op Ivy is anything but just keeping the rhythm, and you can tell that a lot of the bassists probably had a blast doing these covers.
OK, with that out of the way, how do you cover what is possibly one of the most famous opening tracks in punk? Danger INC. gives it their all and do a good job of it. I like how they mix up how the vocals are delivered, the overall landing of the vocals at the start aren’t really jiving with me (which is funny because I generally like Jessica’s voice and delivery). The chorus delivery rocks but, maybe in an effort to differentiate, they went too far? But I’ll tell you this, any qualms I have are washed away when they get to that break down. It’s so fun to hear!
Julie River (TGEFM contributor) – This feels less like a cover and more like a collage that Danger INC. made by chopping up the song and putting the pieces back together in weird ways to make a whole new picture. I wasn’t sure about this one at first listen since it sounds so extremely different from the original, but it’s grown on me from repeated listens. And I agree with Jeff about the break down. In the end, I feel like I have to give this song credit because it’s original and I’m always trying to recognize that sort of thing.
Dan “Rizchex” (TGEFM contributor) – I also wasn’t sure after the first couple of plays how I felt about it. Even though it’s the first track I waited a few days and came back to it before commenting. I also love the break down, I like the guitar too especially in the bridge section, after a few listens I am on board with this one.
Jeff – It definitely does grow on you.
Julie – You basically have to let go of your expectations for this to be a proper cover to really enjoy this one.
Jeff – Agreed but, you know, it’s tough to do that. I’m tryin’, Julie. Lordy, I’m tryin’… (laughter)
02) We Are The Union and Eve 6 – “Sound System”
Julie – This one kinda predates the comp and comes as the result of We Are the Union asking Eve 6 on Twitter if they wanted to do this cover and being shocked that Eve 6 read it let alone agreed to it. While I love both artists, it’s an oddball pairing, which I feel like both artists understand. And I don’t know what Eve 6 really brings to the table here. Had Eve 6 ever put out a ska song before? I honestly can’t remember one. It sounds kind of like it’s just a WATU cover of Operation Ivy that Eve 6 is along for the ride on. And, as much as I love WATU, this cover is a tad too straightforward for my taste, especially when viewed next to some of these other really creative takes on these songs.
Dan – This might be one of the most covered Op Ivy songs so I was hoping for something very unique. I don’t know very much about Eve 6 and I would agree that this sounds just like a WATU song to me. It’s a good version and the vocals are done nice, but there is nothing too special about it.
Jeff – This one harbors a bit less anticipation because we’ve already heard it. It’s a nice cover and he’s pretty close to the original with, I guess, a tighter performance than OpIvy’s. The addition of the organ and horns make it fun. I hesitate to really compare this to the other, new covers because this is from a different time and mindset. When the band they did it I imagine they just looked at the oddball pairing and that was the bigger takeaway. I’d imagine that if they were asked to do a new song for the comp, we might’ve gotten something different?
Dunno, I like it. There’s that.
Julie – Who’s “he”?
Jeff – it’s I have no idea who he is or why I wrote that. I haven’t been sleeping well lately. (laughter)
03) Sweet Gloom – “Jaded”
Julie – I burst out laughing when this song abruptly switched to the Green Day song of the same name. They didn’t do much else to really differentiate from the original, but they get huge points from me for that joke.
Jeff – I was pretty much done with Green Day after Dookie and so, while I knew that Sweet Gloom was doing some other song, I didn’t know what it was until you mentioned who it was.
Yeah, Sweet Gloom doesn’t really venture far afield on this cover. It’s basically a better-produced version of the original. I think we’re going to come across this often. OpIvy didn’t have the best recordings (which is part of the charm), and a lot of bands seem to lean into that low budget quality, or lean out into modern, decent production. The cover is good, don’t get me wrong. I enjoyed it, but except for that Green Day insertion, it’s pretty straight-forward.
Julie – Done with Green Day after Dookie? What kind of joy hater are you? Next thing you’re going to tell me is that you aren’t my real dad!
Jeff – (laughter) They just weren’t interesting anymore. By becoming more “punk” on Dookie (which, I guess, at one point Billy Joe then said that they were never punk), they actually became a lot less interesting. And I am still your father, young lady!
Dan – I’m not a big Green Day fan myself, aside from the Kerplunk cassette tape I wore out, but I knew that was a Green Day song stuffed in there, come on Jeff! I didn’t catch that this song was also called “Jaded” and now that I know it, that takes this up a notch for me. Otherwise as already stated, this is a pretty straight-forward but good cover. Now I’m going to go listen to Kerplunk to see if I still dig it and I’ll have Sweet Gloom to blame for getting back into Green Day.
Julie – I was just listening to Green Day’s “Jaded” and felt really disappointed that it didn’t turn into the OpIvy song halfway through.
Jeff – (laughter)
04) Plush Palace – “Take Warning”
Julie – It took me a second to decide how to feel about this one at first because they took all the ska out of it and replaced it with pure indie rock vulnerability. But once I adjusted to it being a completely different genre, I was really impressed in how this version conveys different emotions from the original. It’s like the original is an appeal to action from a place of anger where this version is an appeal from a place of pain and loss. There’s something wistful about this version that’s really unique.
Dan – I agree this version has a completely different vibe and emotional feel. Not only did they change the sound they kind of gave the song a new meaning. The drumming in the beginning reminds me “The Crowd” and this version keeps the cool bass line. I am into this one.
Jeff – I feel it’s kinda keeping that lo-fi feel that opIvy is known for, but to different effect. The vocals have this scratchy, tinny sound to them that, for some reason, really pulls me in. Plush Palace is a band I’ll be keeping my eye on.
05) The Chinkees – “The Crowd”
Julie – The Chinkees have the honor of covering the title track (of sorts) to this compilation. There’s not a huge difference from the original here, but the keyboards do add a little something subtle. I still would have liked to see a more original interpretation here. This wasn’t really a stand out for me.
Dan – I agree with Julie that this was pretty close to the original version with just some subtle differences. I however really liked this one. I listened to the entire album once through just playing in the background the first time and when this track came on I thought to myself this one was very good. It could be that it’s just such a great song and doesn’t really need anything changed or added but that could go for most of the songs on this comp, so I don’t know. But I give it a thumbs up.
Jeff – For a bunch of songs that are about positivity, even when the immediate theme seems negative, I’ve always felt that “The Crowd” was, musically, one of OpIvy’s more sinister sounding songs. One would think that the addition of the keyboard would pep it up a bit, but it just makes it sound that much more anxiety-inducing.
I’d never heard The Chinkees version before, and I’m glad it was included on the comp.
06) Matamoska – “Bombshell”
Julie – Something I seem to have learned about myself while listening to this album is that I have spent an inordinate time fantasizing about how I would cover these songs if I were a musician. But imagine my surprise when Matamoska seemed to read my mind because they did it exactly the way I always wanted to do it, particularly the way they add more “shes” on the offbeats.
Dan – This was a fun, more modern version of the original with some horns added in. I liked this one, but I don’t have a lot of other thoughts about it, it is a very short song.
Mike Elfers (TGEFM contributor)– Matamoska did a tremendous job, but Home Grown also did in 1997, and if you little wieners know me… I shall always support the Home Grown.
07) Eichlers – “Unity”
Julie – This one floored me. I always thought Jesse Michaels kind of phoned in the lyrics on the original. It’s well-meaning but a little oversimplified. Eichlers saw that and decided to fix that by adding some better lyrics which bring a level of nuance that was missing from the original. And putting a ska beat underneath dance pop elements is going to piss off a lot of traditionalists and I will dance in their tears to the tune of this song because I love how deliciously irreverent this cover is. This might be my favorite on the album. Outstanding.
Dan – This is another song that has been covered many times before so I was glad this version was so unique. I wasn’t crazy about it after the first listen, but after a few more I thought it was pretty good for what Eichlers was trying to do.
Jeff – There are going to be people who hate what Eichlers did here. It’s true and we just have to accept that.
I’ll admit that there’s a fine line between hyper-ska and hyper-frenetic and Eichlers often toes pretty close to that line for me, so sometimes it is a bit tough. My kid likes this more than I do, but I do like it. Eichlers took the original apart, and then brought back together again in a manner that works just as well as the original, making it peppier while keeping the strength of the message intact. Maybe even more so?
08) Neckscars – “Vulnerability”
Julie – I like how slowing this song just a hair brings out the song’s…dare I say vulnerability? But it does seem to get to a more emotional place than the original, which really matches the lyrics even better than the tone of the Operation Ivy version.
Dan – I would agree with Julie, as it does feel more emotional and goes well with the lyrics.
Jeff – “Vulnerability” is probably my favorite OpIvy song. I also thing it is one of the most pessimistic of the bunch, so what does that say about me? It’s a hard song musically, and I like how Neckscars mixes tempos, although maybe(?) a bit too slow at the start?
09) Keira – “Bankshot”
Jeff – I was honestly surprised that we get something like, what is it? Three covers that have some chip-tune elements. I first heard Keira from her submission to the Jawbreaker tribute album, and struck up a friendship based on mutual loves of music, Gundam, and supporting LGBT+ rights. So I may be a little partial to her rendition of “Bankshot”.
Overall I think “Bankshot” is a great song for her to ply her skills at both electronica and, as the song progresses, the transition to some talented plucking of the six-strings. Editorially, though, I think being one song separated from Eichlers’ hyper-ska version of “Unity” might be a little off-putting for those who not fans of, or are on the fence with, the growing field of chip-tune music. Still, neither song suffers from it and are both super fun, and Keira puts out a frenetic giant Pixy Stix version of this classic track.
Julie – How do you cover an instrumental and give it your own spin? It’s really a bigger challenge than doing something with lyrics because you have one fewer thing anchoring you to the original version of the one you’re covering. Keira’s take on the original melody remade into a lo-fi electronica song is really refreshing. It’s miles away and yet there’s so much of the original still in there. I agree that it comes a little soon after Eichler’s “Unity,” which has a similar style to it, but since this compilation does seem to be following Energy’s original track listing (which I love, by the way) there wasn’t really a way to avoid that.
Dan – I love this one! Completely different from the original but yet easily recognizable. The guitar part really put this over the top for me. I kind of wish Keira would have threwn in a couple “Bankshots” maybe with a vocoder or something, but I still like it sans any vocals.
10) Union Jack – “One of These Days”
Julie – If covering an instrumental seems weird, try covering a cover. In an effort to cover the entire OpIvy discography in the order of the track listings of Energy and the self-titled CD version that included the Hectic EP and other stray singles, one band inevitably got stuck covering “One of These Days,” which was itself is a cover of “These Boots Are Made for Walkin’” which was originally recorded by Nancy Sinatra in 1966. Operation Ivy’s version gutted the song down to just the chorus, making their version about two lines long, meaning it’s basically a de facto instrumental. Union Jack has a really hard task, then, and one they don’t seem to be particularly up to. Unlike Keira’s clever spin on “Bankshot,” Union Jack seems to give up and just play it exactly like the original.
Dan – Yes this wasn’t a big departure from the original. There was some nice little jingly organ sounds in the middle and the drumming was great. I guess they could have added in some of the Nancy Sinatra lyrics if they really wanted to change it up.
11) The Raging Nathans – “Gonna Find You”
Julie – This is another one of those covers that seems to come down to just being a re-recording of the OpIvy version with better production value. It’s nice to hear songs like this one that no longer sound like they were played on a guitar found in the toddlers’ section at a Toys ‘R’ Us. The Raging Nathans give us some real passion on the vocals, but not much in the way of an original take.
Dan – I was going to say the same thing. The vocal delivery is on point and it is a good cover, but that’s about all it is. Who was that band that played all Fisher-Price instruments?
Jeff – I love how he yells and extends “SOOOoooooon” in the intro. I see what you’re saying Julie, but I think there is a bit of a fresh coat of paint on this with some slight percussion flourishes and the like. Not a huge reimagining, but a good cover nonetheless.
Check back in a bit for part 2 of our track-by-track discussion. In the meantime Mooorree Than Just Another Comp is available digitally at the STHR Bandcamp. For physical releases on vinyl (inventory is going fast!) visit the Sell The Heart or Lavasocks web stores.
the white drew carey (aka – Jeff Sorley) is the founder and head editor of TGEFM. He’s lived (outside of) Chicago, Madison WI, (ugh) Penn State, Lyon FR, Oxford UK, central New Jersey, and now within earshot of SFO in the Bay Area. When not scouring the web for more great bands and labels to post about, he also spends time drawing (mostly) silly sci-fi and anime stuff under the name Asplenia Studios.
