Rock Animals

AMG Review of Rock Animals

Richie Unterberger
All Music Guide

Like Jonathan Richman, this group has carved out a niche that combines wide-eyed cuteness with unbridled rock & roll. That's good and bad; like Richman, you can rely on Shonen Knife for consistent fun, but also like Richman, you shouldn't expect much variation or artistic growth from album to album. Rock Animals adds a somewhat harder edge to their sound without tempering their child-like innocence. Occasionally they branch out from their stock-in-trade mix of bubblegum and power punk. "Another Day" is an orchestrated piano ballad that recalls girl-group dramas of the 1960s, and "Music Square" is a folkish tune featuring acoustic guitar and harmonica. The album features a guest appearance by Sonic Youth guitarist Thurston Moore on "Butterfly," and includes one track, "Quavers," that was not available on the import version of this CD.