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Be Your Own Pet, 'Get Awkward'

Scrappy young foursome puts a little fun and danger back into punk rock

By Andy Hermann

Metromix
March 18, 2008

Critic's Rating:

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Backstory: Now that Paramore has more or less conquered the world, Be Your Own Pet is in danger of being labeled as “that other punk-pop band from Nashville, Tenn., with a cute chick singer.” Which would be a shame, because BYOP is as dangerous as Paramore is safe, bashing through their punky garage-rock with a balls-out abandon that recalls the heyday of the Dead Kennedys and the Germs.

Why you should care: Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore is a fan; he signed BYOP to his Ecstatic Peace label shortly after the band surfaced in 2005, releasing their self-titled debut in 2006 as well as this smash-and-grab follow-up. And lead singer Jemina Pearl Abegg has enough attitude and energy for 20 punk bands; “next year I’ll be 21,” she howls on “Super Soaked,” “so look out world, ‘cause I wanna have fun!”

Verdict: Underneath all the buzzsaw guitars and cymbal crashes that make BYOP sound like such a throwback to 1978, there’s a lot of smart, fun songwriting at work on “Get Awkward.” “The Kelly Affair” conjures up a sleazy, debauched L.A. with images of popping pills and a few discreet surf guitar licks and Go-Go’s–style handclaps; “You’re a Waste” is a perfectly breezy kiss-off to a bad boyfriend; “Zombie Graveyard Party” is, improbably, a peppy love song from the dead to the living. Even the album’s most sophomoric moments, like “Food Fight!” (which is about, well, a food fight), are goofy, mosh-pit-friendly fun, recalling the days when bands like the Dead Milkmen were there to remind us that punk doesn’t always have to be taken seriously.

X-Factor: Ecstatic Peace’s parent label, Universal, apparently decided that the violent revenge fantasy “Becky” was too disturbing for tender American audiences; it’s available only the overseas version of “Get Awkward.” Ironically, it’s the catchiest, most radio-friendly track BYOP’s ever recorded.