Miniature Tigers: Tell it to the Volcano

Miniature Tigers
Tell it to the Volcano
Modern Art Records
2008-09-16

The Miniature Tigers’ debut full-length mines the same whimsical, slightly silly pop territory as their earlier White Magic and Black Magic EPs. With song titles that read like they could be episodes of The Venture Bros. (“Cannibal Queen”, “Dino Damage”, “Hot Venom”, “Last Night’s Fake Blood”), the band is clearly not overly serious. But singer Charlie Brand’s high, wistful vocals keep the songs from becoming too comedic, despite the goofy subject matter. The band’s biggest strength is knowing how to write catchy pop hooks. Tell it to the Volcano is filled with the tunes that lodge instantly in your brain and have you singing along before the songs are even finished. And with 11 tracks coming in at just under 30 minutes, the album wraps up before all those hooks start to wear out their welcome. This is fun stuff.

RATING 7 / 10