The Rakes
Capture / Release
V2 Records
Despite the hassle of dealing with the “Enhanced CD” aspects of this disc, I recommend it. The Rakes are a decent pub rock band out of London. The vocals drip with working class authenticity, and while the guitar work won’t set your speakers on fire, the infectious melodies and sense of lager-soaked solidarity recalls such ancient rockers as Slade or Mott the Hoople. Since this disc has a few hundred megabytes of data, I’ll mention that there are four videos, the best of which is “22 Grand Job.” It features lead singer Alan Donohue with a score of hot-looking office assistants complaining about a medium-wage job in an anonymous office. Since all these women look like they escaped from Robert Palmer’s “Addicted to Love” video, he shouldn’t complain TOO loudly. Another fine video, “Retreat,” bemoans the cycle of work, drink, puke, and sleep, but when you’re stuck in the in-between class, what are your choices? Wrapping up the digital content are half a dozen rather pointless Shockwave-based games. You have to drink so many beers before the barman catches you, try to chat up a girl, and smoke a pack of cigarettes in a fixed time. While the songs and videos have real entertainment value, I rate the games “D” for Duh.
The Rakes: http://www.therakes.co.uk, V2 Records: http://www.v2records.com
