MIGHTY HIGH (Legalize Tre Bags) LP/CD
Fuck yeah, MIGHTY HIGH! This record is a welcome ripper from Ripple Music that both brought a smile and a snarl to my face. It charges through some punk-as-fuck heavy rock (or vice versa) that doesn't mess around with too much stuff other than intensity, energy and passion. 'Legalize Tre Bags' is a completely down-to-earth, wild and primal ride. It 's angry. It's funny. It's also a powerful jolt of rebellious energy. There's no doubt about it - MIGHTY HIGH have a grasp on what makes rock and roll so exciting; when it's done with humor, crunch and sincerity. Toss in a little irony too.
Their love of 1970's heavy rock really comes through in songs like 'The Ram' that sounds as if early Grand Funk Railroad would have chosen to be a punk rock band or 'Cheep Beer, Dirt Weed', which is infected with the immortal spirit of the MC5. And they show off their love for 1970's punk rock with the explosive opener 'I Don't Wanna Listen To Yes' (neither do I!) and 'Come On! I’m Holdin'. It strikes me again and again that MIGHY HIGH have the rare ability to perfectly distill all their influences to create their own high-octane brew. Because in spite of all references to the past, 'Legalize Tre Bags' has an element of timelessness about it. A song like 'Mooche' is to some extent similar to Turbonegro during their 'Ass Cobra' period (this is by the way their best record) whereas 'Speedcreep' could have been written by Dwarves frontman Blag Dahlia.
As you can see, this album doesn't lack for variety, even if the name of the game is rock 'n' roll. It might just be easier to say that MIGHTY HIGY is influenced by everything that rocks hard, otherwise my name-dropping goes on and on. The album is rounded off with a real extraordinarily funny artwork, done by Wayne 'Braino' Bjerke. I therefore summarize as follows: 'Legalize Tre Bags' stands above most of the stuff that tries to pass itself for rock 'n' roll these days and it's one of my favorite releases of 2012. My advice: Buy it. Live it. Love it.
(KK)