Cobra Starship - Viva La Cobra
Reviewed on Feb 8, 2008 by Tom
One can only guess what drove Gabe Saporta away from his Midtown flock, but you have to admit he is well on his way to carving his own place in the music history books with his incarnation as an over-the-top kind of king of catchy, danceable music. Now agreed, the band looks rather sheepish at first glance, but then again one isn’t supposed to take them seriously.
Produced by Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy fame, you can bet your life that “Viva La Cobra” is as catchy as the flu, but rather than sticking to the saccharine sweet pop-punk their contemporaries dive into, Cobra Starship add elements of cynism and quirkiness that are pretty hard to deny. To put it blunt: “Viva La Cobra” is a lot of fun, in every aspect. Both the lyrical content and the way the album translates musically with its intake of different genres, offer an immediate accessibility that will surely hit the mark with anyone who likes contemporary dance-worthy ‘punk’ music. Whether they go for latino fiesta, funky, disco, pop or rap, there’s enough of typical Cobra Starship moments to go around for everyone. And that is maybe the biggest flaw of the album: I feel like there is not enough consistency in Cobra Starship just yet to warrant a young screaming horde of fans like FOB and PATD have been plagued with, but the Gabe Saporta fronted band surely offer a more interesting listen, without sounding faux or contrived. My only big gripe with the album is that it all sounds too artificial. An artsy contraption it may be, and there’s lots of supercatchy moments, but too many parts where the band seems to lose direction and focus as well.
But ‘Viva La Cobra’, at its best, is a fun-filled, potent, swinging album that you can take home to your mom. I’m thinking the best is surely yet to come, but in any case, and despite its shortcomings, ‘Viva La Cobra’ already shortened the lifespan of my vocal chords with a couple of years. “The City Is At War”, “Smile For The Paparazzi” and “Angie” are instant classics though, proving that Saporta obviously hasn’t forgotten how to write a good tune.
When’s that Midtown reunion due again?
Album Information
| Best Song: | Angie |
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| Medium/Type: | Full-Length |
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| Released: | October 23rd, 2007 |
| Record Label: | Fueled By Ramen |
Related Links:
| Viewed: | 277 times |
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Tracklisting
- The City Is At War
- Guilty Pleasure
- One Day, Robots Will Cry
- Kiss My Sass
- Damn You Look Good and I'm Drunk (Scandalous)
- The Would Has Its Shine (But I Would Drop it on a Dime)
- Smile for the Paparazzi
- Angie
- Prostitution is the World's Oldest Profession (And I, Dear Madame, Am a Professional
- My Moves Are White (White Hot, That Is)
- Pleasure Ryland
