Review: Foxy Shazam – Gonzo

BY JEREMY HAAS

Well this is definitely…different.  Foxy Shazam surprised their fans a few weeks ago with their brand new, self-released record, Gonzo. It’s been a little over two years now since their super-energetic glam-metal release The Church of Rock and Roll flopped, and about ten years since they last self-released an album, their debut The Flamingo Trigger. Between the two was a crazy career filled with genre-variations, line-up changes, wacky stage antics, and a quickly growing fan base.  However, this year Foxy Shazam went for subtlety, both in their sound and style of announcement.  Gonzo was put up on Foxy’s Bandcamp page with no warning, available for free digital download and limited vinyl release.

So, what’s so different about Gonzo? Well for one, it makes every other Foxy Shazam album look and sound like Freddy Mercury on a case of Red Bulls. Gonzo is a lot calmer than anything Foxy Shazam has made before, but this apparent lack of outward energy and shock value serve to surprise even the band’s most seasoned listeners.  I, like many other fans, was initially drawn to Foxy’s extreme energy, recognizing their musical skill and dynamic sound shortly after marveling at the visual insanity of front man Eric Nally eating several lit cigarettes on stage.  With music featuring screeching vocals, arena-like production quality, and extremely dramatic overall vibes, Foxy Shazam have built their career on being the wildest, most glamorous, most theatrical rock and roll band around today.

That’s why it was so shocking to hear Gonzo’s lo-fi production values, and stripped down tracks featuring the bare minimum in terms of instrumentation. With the help of legendary producer Steve Albini (In Utero, Surfer Rosa), Foxy’s once stagy symphonies of horn-lines are replaced by a single, muted trumpet, while an ever-present grand piano is done away with, and a toy-synthesizer takes its place, all while the once loudly strummed supporting guitar chords are now carefully picked out, fuzzy, track-defining riffs.  One can easily see this transition on the first song of the record, title-track “Gonzo”, which opens slowly but suddenly takes on a careful funky groove.  Soon after, Nally joins in brooding rather than screaming, with subtle comedic jibes like “a hero is something the Foo Fighters sing about. Me, I’m just a man.”

Gonzo is a step in a brand new direction for Foxy Shazam, and it’s definitely a grower.  As a self-described concept album, no single track really stands above the others.  Instead each of the songs bleed into the next, and while single lines of lyrics like “I’m not afraid to die because I’m already dead” stand out and certain musical aspects like the super catchy synthesizer in “Poem Pathetic” or the bouncy drum line showing off Albini’s distinct style in “Shoe Box” leave lasting impressions in your head. Gonzo certainly isn’t a collection of energetic hits; rather, it’s a deeper, darker, more introspective look into the madness that is Foxy Shazam.  The lack of backing vocals from horn player Alex Nauth is refreshing, allowing the complex character of lead vocalist Nally to shine in a brand new, dim light.

Foxy Shazam shocked their fans with the surprise release of Gonzo, and then caught us completely off guard with the stripped down, relaxed, and groovy style of its music.  Overall, it isn’t like any other Foxy Shazam album and while at first it may disappoint, the album grows as listeners begin to truly appreciate the vocal abilities of Nally and the musical merit and dynamics of the rest of the band, rather than giving all of their attention to wacky stage antics and loud, arena rock style. Gonzo is fresh, new, complex, and downright groovy.