Hot IQs - Dangling Modifier EP

  by Mark Rowland

published: 6 / 3 / 2007

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Review

The Hot IQs play the kind of anthemic American indie rock popular with kids who like Weezer. They perform these songs in such an odd way, however, that they make quite an interesting proposition. Take Eli Mishkin’s voice, for example; sitting somewhere between the Beat Happening’s Calvin Johnson, Morrissey and Talking Heads' David Byrne, his delivery is somewhat leftfield. Then there’s the band’s Pavement-influenced tendency to chuck a bunch of percussion instruments and squelch keyboard parts into their songs, and their random lyrics (sample: “You’re looking tough/with your retro 70's muff/ it’s not so dumb the second time around”) and - bish, bash, bosh - they’ve made modern American indie pop sound not boring. In places, such as ‘Elephant in White’, they sound like an exuberant version of Interpol at their most commercial, if they were more influenced by Beat Happening, throwaway pop and oddball indie ensembles like Danielson. In other places, they sound like Alkaline Trio if they grew the balls to try something new. In other words, good music with soaring choruses.

Track Listing:-

1 Duck & Cover
2 Retromuff
3 Elephant In White
4 Let's Inflate
5 Web In Front