MAN BITES GOD - CHOKING HAZARD
05/05/06 Filed in: Review Show
Man
Bites God occupy
a weird place in the musical comedy spectrum. The
music here isn’t just for comedic effect, so it’s
probably more appropriate to call them funny
musicians rather than musical comedians. These guys
are writing songs, and they just happen to be a bit
funnier than the norm. They’re the sort of band that
for the most part wouldn’t be out of place on a bill
with The Lucksmiths or Ruck Rover or any of the many
light-hearted and pun-heavy Australian folk pop
groups that dot the inner northern suburbs of
Melbourne.
Pony is a bit of a shock as a venue after the relative cleanness of the rooms in the hub and at duckboard and trades hall. Pony is a bit of a dive. On the upside, the bar is right there if you want a drink during the show, but the fact that people could smoke there was really annoying. It’s also a fair hike from the town hall hub, but on a Wednesday night it’s not too hard to find a car park in that part of town.
The set consisted almost of entirely new material (or it was new to me at least), and though the tracks were a bit hit and miss, you could always just enjoy the music if the humour fell flat. There were some absolute standout numbers, including a brilliant “socially aware calypso tribute” to lollipop ladies, complete with guest vocalist. I was also quite fond of their closing acapella number and their song about having parents that wanted to have a girl. The between song banter was reminiscent of Tripod, with the performers put each other down in a humourous manner. This was a lot of fun to watch, and was a quick and simple way to get to know the characters of the band.
Man Bites God have also provided us with arguably the cutest poster of the festival – The three boys in the form of Lego men. Cashing in on this cuteness factor, you can pick up badges of each Lego figure for $2 a pop. Some good jokes were had over the use of this merchandise as a popularity contest. Pick one up for your favourite indie badge wearer.
There’s a lot to like here, and it’s all really accessible. The songs are catchy and for the most part they don’t drag out the joke too long. The mixing was good enough to make sure you could always hear the vocals above the music. If you’re up for some mid-week fun to give you a break from the standup, you won’t go wrong here. There’s only one show left in the festival (Wednesday May 3rd – this is only a two show run), but the boys play quite a few shows all year round, so catch them when you can.
The Groggy Squirrel
Daniel Sheppard
Pony is a bit of a shock as a venue after the relative cleanness of the rooms in the hub and at duckboard and trades hall. Pony is a bit of a dive. On the upside, the bar is right there if you want a drink during the show, but the fact that people could smoke there was really annoying. It’s also a fair hike from the town hall hub, but on a Wednesday night it’s not too hard to find a car park in that part of town.
The set consisted almost of entirely new material (or it was new to me at least), and though the tracks were a bit hit and miss, you could always just enjoy the music if the humour fell flat. There were some absolute standout numbers, including a brilliant “socially aware calypso tribute” to lollipop ladies, complete with guest vocalist. I was also quite fond of their closing acapella number and their song about having parents that wanted to have a girl. The between song banter was reminiscent of Tripod, with the performers put each other down in a humourous manner. This was a lot of fun to watch, and was a quick and simple way to get to know the characters of the band.
Man Bites God have also provided us with arguably the cutest poster of the festival – The three boys in the form of Lego men. Cashing in on this cuteness factor, you can pick up badges of each Lego figure for $2 a pop. Some good jokes were had over the use of this merchandise as a popularity contest. Pick one up for your favourite indie badge wearer.
There’s a lot to like here, and it’s all really accessible. The songs are catchy and for the most part they don’t drag out the joke too long. The mixing was good enough to make sure you could always hear the vocals above the music. If you’re up for some mid-week fun to give you a break from the standup, you won’t go wrong here. There’s only one show left in the festival (Wednesday May 3rd – this is only a two show run), but the boys play quite a few shows all year round, so catch them when you can.
The Groggy Squirrel
Daniel Sheppard