me first and the gimme gimmes

take a break

'You'd figure by now the joke would've gotten old. It's the same old punk covers of pop songs, the same old "Yeahs" being screamed at the end of songs, the same old heavily distorted power-chord progressions. After all, how long can this gimmick last?

A long time, apparently - over seven years to date. As long as there are songs in the extremities - tunes that made musicians' careers either successful or a joke - these parasitic punks will always have something off of which to feed.

Made up of NOFX, Foo Fighters and Lagwagon members, the Gimme Gimmes are possibly the most effective post-modern musical satirists of all time. Whether donning bowling uniforms, bowties or gaudy plaid pants, they still bring the rock to oldies, country, and soulful pop.

On "Take A Break" they have set their sites on popular R&B songs of the past few decades. They take on R. Kelly, Boyz 2 Men, Prince (as done by Sinead O'Connor), Lionel Richie, Stevie Wonder and more. After showing these artists how their songs should have sounded to start off with, they leave you with the searing question. And that is: "What's up now, bitch?"

The answer to that question is something you'll have to figure out for yourself.

The highlights of this album include "Save the Best for Last," "End of the Road," "Natural Woman" and pretty much every other track on this album.

If taking a break from the serious nature of the music scene - which was the intent of creating this band - is what you are looking for then Me First is the way to go. At the very least, you are bound to laugh at the sheer absurdity of their songs.

Come for the gimmick, stay for the irony and satire.