photo courtesy of Adios Fatso

Single Reviews of Adios Fatso: “WTF” and “Gopro, Not Again!”

If you dig two minute-ish broad-influence punk-styled raucous rock complaints-slash-anthems (though the song lengths probably technically disqualify them from being called anthems), you’re gonna love Adios Fatso‘s two somewhat recent singles, “WTF” and “Gopro, Not Again!” Both songs were recorded at the Blasting Room in Fort Collins, Colorado, mixed by Andrew Berlin (Descendents, Teenage Bottlerocket, Rise Against), and mastered by Jason Livermore (NoFx, Propagandhi, Lagwagon), so you know the real, raw, rambunctious Adios Fatso sound was well-captured on the recordings.

image courtesy of Adios Fatso

While this Massachusetts band’s tempo and edginess are pure punk energy, other influences come through loud and clear. Pop, funk, classic rock, soul, and more all show up here and there in the mix. And an overarching jangly-psychedelic ’70s pop veneer appears in both tracks, though when you put so many ingredients into a punk rock blender, you can never be entirely sure whether you’re hearing an influence or simply the natural result of blue and red making purple. Of course, on the “Gopro, Not Again!” cover art, the red and blue remain distinctly separate, never creating purple, so perhaps that’s telling you something. (Seriously, no, that’s completely unrelated.)

image courtesy of Adios Fatso

Lyrically, Adios Fatso insists its lyrics are based on real-life events, and its fun to listen with that in mind. The first of the two singles, “WTF,” gives a hint into its real-life basis with the closing lyrics “When gaslighting is the name of the game they will play, making good things seem bad, and they’ll blame you (yeah, they’ll blame you) every time.” Seriously, WTF? It’s a solid 2 minutes of energy. Well, mostly. “WTF” slips a cool stop-start rhythm into the chorus, providing a smoother vocal befitting its briefly slower pace, and it ends with reference to being bullshit-free. (I’ll circle back to the bullshit-themed reference later.) As for those closing lyrics, they lead up to a short but blistering guitar run that’ll thrill fans of all guitar rock subgenres.

photo courtesy of Adios Fatso

More recent single “Gopro, Not Again!” very quickly gets to its drum-slapping rhythm, but it also features a funky little bass riff, an almost jazzy breakdown, some ska-reminiscent horns, and some slightly slower segments that allow listeners (or concertgoers, I’d imagine) to breathe occasionally before launching into the song’s pervasive, chaotic, breakneck pace. The song itself focuses on the disappointments of a misbehaving GoPro, with recording attempts thwarted by such nuisances as a firmware update and a faulty SD card. I know I’m citing the other song here, but WTF? As for the lyric linking the two songs together, “Gopro, Not Again!” ends with the line “I’m sick of dealing with your bullshit” before launching into a wall-of-noise yet tight instrumental close.

Both of these songs are infectious. If you have any predilection toward enjoying this kind of music, both “WTF” and “Gopro, Not Again!” will become fast favorites!