Review: Covert Flops – “Mission: Implausible”

Mom’s Basement Records, 19 November 2021

Covert Flops kick up another pop punk storm with Mission: Implausible

Indiana’s Covert Flops have been a favorite, lurking in my spy camera for a bit now.  I really enjoyed the catchy singalongs on DEFCON 1-2-3-4 with absolutely infuriating brain hooks like “Illuminati High”, “Riff Randell”, and “(I Was A) Dick For Tracy” capturing my attention and refusing to let go, and the handful of songs that have dropped since have been fun, too.  The newest from the band, Mission: Implausible, is their Mom’s Basement debut (special kudos to Mom’s Basement who seems to release lots of gold these days) and captures a band with even more to offer.

The first couple songs on Mission leap out with a bunch of angst, doing a fun two-sides-of-The Queers-like thing.  “Get Off My Case” is pretty to-the-point, repeating the title with a bunch of attitude and angst.  The song is fast and aggressive, but damned if it doesn’t have a dumb hooking appeal.  Follow-up “Annoy Me” is a little slower and super-infectious, offering one of my favorite snotty singalongs on the record while the lyrics have a fun snark.  Later on, “Monkey Brain” shoots out of the blocks in a dead sprint that pairs up an up-down-up-down guitar bounce with absurd “Tarzan ran off with my Jane” lyrics and even more absurd monkey sounds.  It’s goofball Ramones.  And near the end, early single “Blundercover” kicks up a bunch of dust in less than a minute, anchored by a cool riff, a memorable melody, and vocal phrasings that plant a flag.  There’s lots of angst and snot in this stuff.

Even with all the angst, the pop hooks pop up all over the place on Mission: Implausible.  Funny boy-girl songs like “Over Being Over You” wrap the sugar with “ooh-ooh’s” and vocal rounds and handclaps.  “Butterface” and “Lucy Is A Blockhead” both get carried by some of the better and more melodic bass that I’ve heard in a bit, with “Butterface” doing a sort of surfy 50’s rock and roll thing and “Lucy” hooking ears with chants and a key change.  The Flops even pull boy-girl-spy songs out with the fantastically titled “KGB My Baby” and “Agent 99”.  The “KGB” chorus is catchy like crazy, and the guitar leads on the bridge and outro won’t go outta style anytime soon, and the vocal hook on the “Agent 99” chorus is to spy for (see what I did there?  I should be embarrassed by it, but I’m not).  “Spy School Dropout” also touches on a spy theme, coupling “s-p-y” spell-outs and key changes with words about wanting to flip burgers rather than working for the KGB or MI6. 

And while all the above-mentioned stuff hits just right, my two favorites might just be “Staten Island” and closer “404 Not Found”.  “Staten Island” has a ridiculously catchy chorus (“it’s a long way back to Staten Island” is sung in a way that I can’t get out of my head) set off by keys and the verses don’t let up either.  It’s a simple one, but positively terrific.  And “404” starts off with a guitar riff that reminds me a bunch of Screeching Weasel’s “Don’t Turn Out The Lights” and the keys on the chorus are awesome once again, making me think back to Bark Like A Dog.  On top of that, the phrasing and backing vocals are super memorable and get me singing along.  Even at 3 minutes plus, it doesn’t overstay its welcome (and that’s saying something considering my typical attention span).  These pop hooks bring the goods.

I really like Mission: Implausible front-to-back.  There’s no stinkers and the melodic addictiveness is for real.  Those who dig stuff like Ramones buzz, Screeching Weasel pop, Queers snot and angst, and Lillingtons spy themes are gonna have a good time with this one.

Favorite song: “Staten Island”, maybe

Favorite moment: the closing vocal rounds and handclaps on “Over Being Over You”

Favorite whatever else: “KGB My Baby” is a pretty fantastic title (and song)