Even without the ace songcraft, absurdist Brooklyn rock quartet MiniBoone would be among the greatest of current Brooklyn bands by sheer virtue of their decision to not take themselves so damn seriously. That’s not to say the gents don’t take a lot of pride in what they are, which is a bunch of transplanted New Englanders who wear their deep knowledge of the pop on their scrawny, rolled-up sleeves.
The band has side-kicked their way through a 7” and a couple EPs over the last half-decade or so and is now releasing their debut full-length courtesy of the estimable gents at Ernest Jenning Record Co. The 12 songs that comprise their eponymous debut invoke a number of 1980s musical touchstones. Talking Heads and Oingo Boingo come quickest to mind, with a healthy bit of Hall & Oates on the standout “Baby I Hope So”. Get this in your earholes stat: MiniBoone pair the skewed perspective of Timbuk 3 and Wall Of Voodoo with a general two-beers-and-a-toke vibe that will have you throwing an arm around a stranger and singing along.