Revisiting: The Bloodhound Gang's Hooray for Boobies

 

Hooray for Boobies by The Bloodhound Gang

Release year: 1999

Last Time I Listened to It: I don't think I've listened to this since I found New Wave of American Heavy Metal bands like Shadows Fall and Lamb of God in like 2004. And listening to Hooray for Boobies now, it becomes clear there's a really good reason why.

The late 90s were a weird time for me, musically speaking. I was still listening to thrash and 80s hair metal but I was also always looking for new music to dig on. I had yet to discover the magnificence that is the Scandinavian metal scene, nor was I aware of what was going on in the American underground. So, I listened to a LOT of Weezer and spun a lot of tunes from bands that sounded like Weezer. I even went through a short phase where I kinda (gasp) liked country music. It's true. You can ask my sister. I gave her all my country CDs when I came to my senses and realized country music sucks.

I can't clearly remember why I initially picked up this CD, but I can tell you that it, along with two other Bloodhound Gang albums (One Fierce Beer Coaster and Use Your Fingers) came into heavy rotation as the soundtrack for weekend Star Wars toy questing trips with my buddy, Erik. Both of us appreciated the snotty, lowbrow humor and Jimmy Pop's profane, pop culture-filled lyrics and I dug the group's inclusion of crunching guitar riffs.

But Bloodhound Gang fell out of favor with me once I rediscovered metal. I would occasionally pop in Hooray for Boobies or One Fierce Beer Coaster when I was in a goofy headspace. Since then I've discovered other bands that satisfy my goofy music moods and play much better music. Thus, the Bloodhound Gang became just another band I used to dig.

The Verdict: If you don't believe that a person's taste can change, I offer my experiences with this record as evidence to the contrary. I used to flat-out love Hooray for Boobies. I loved all the dick jokes and pop culture references. I loved the grooves and the big guitars. I loved it all.

But somewhere along the line, what I like changed. Listening to Hooray for Boobies now, and all I hear is try-hard humor, pedestrian riffs and pop culture references filling the role good songwriting usually fills. Jimmy Pop's rhymes feel forced and his delivery, while fitting to his on-record persona, lacks charisma and sometimes comes off flat-out lazy. Oh, and he can't sing to save his life.

Not that there aren't any bright spots on the record. "The Bad Touch" is, and always will be, a full-blown classic. It's catchy as hell and sticks in your head no matter what you do to prevent it from doing so. "Hell Yeah" works cuz it's all about a narcissist daydreaming what the world would be like he were all-powerful. And yeah, wearing tube socks with flip-flops should be illegal.

But these days, Hooray for Boobies doesn't do nearly enough for me to get me to sit through it. If I want music that makes me laugh, I can just listen to Steel Panther and get dudes who actually know how to play their instruments. If I want something catchy to sing along with, there's Weezer or Jimmy Eat World or Fountains of Wayne or even old Queen albums. And if I just want good music to drive or jam out to, there's almost anything else. Hell, I might even prefer country music to Bloodhound gang now. (just kidding...)

Best Songs: The Bad Touch, Hell Yeah