Customer Reviews

Hefty Fine

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(19)
3 star:		(21)
2 star:		(15)
1 star:		(22)

 

 

BHG can't decide if they want to grow up and be real, no-sh*t rap-rockers, stars, and be serious artistes n' all, or if they want to just keep being the self-proclaimed slacker knuckleheads that everyone loves, sitting back and making fun of everything they encounter. This CD is the result of that conflict, and it's clear here that it's not yet been resolved.

I was looking forward to this release, and I've been let down. I was looking forward to more of that gonzo teen-testosterone punk-rap, appropriately vulgar and stupid, but with that hard edge of observation and cynicism braided in some really great samples and beats that made the last two releases so good. But this is not to be. This is all original material, no sampling and riffing, all more or less straightforward rap. It appears that BHG is moving forward, or at least attempting to.

There are none of the slams on Falco and pop culture, none of the Sanford and Son theme samples, none of the truly dumbass and fantastically enjoyable musical mix that made "Hooray For Boobies" and "Use Your Fingers" so much fun to listen to, both for the music and the lyrics. But all growed up, no, that's not the right wording either. Not with a tune like "Farting With a Walkman On" which I can only characterize as just plain stupid.

Musically, "Uhn-Tiss" is interesting, reminiscent of "The Bad Touch." I've already found this to be a good one to slip into a mix playlist or CD for a buddy, and it's weeks before they actually listen to the words and figure out what's going on. I very much enjoy the overall concept of "Ralph Wiggum," although the music for the tune doesn't support its communication too well. The "Balls Out" chords and beat sound an awful lot like "Yummy Down On This," but the latter has still got the upper hand on this pairing, most definitely.

The opening is straightforward enough, a rude rap goof with the Fresh Prince, and then it shifts right into the angry, uber-rapper glop of "Balls Out," about sex and penis size and all that garbage. Okay, who hasn't heard this junk before, and the, ahem, hardness of the rap might just indicate that BHG is trying to take their game a little higher. Then comes the sorry and out of place reference to the pungency of a "jalapeno popper fart." Sorry, guys, but you can't have it both ways, hard and serious, and then hopping on back to the 9th grade locker room goofs that got you to where you're at. Pick one and stay with it.

I also enjoy the lyrics to "Foxtrot Uniform Charlie Kilo." It's not quite the raw misogyny of past BHG albums, but the various euphemisms used are fantastic.

The best writing on the album comes in "Pennsylvania," an excellent-even if the music is massively overpowered by the lyrics-exploration of the screaming stupidity and vapidity of America. I especially enjoy, "...We are Munsoned (a great sneak ref to "Kingpin)...We are flashing twelve o'clock..."

The two little, ah, interludes at tracks 6 and 9 I guess are supposed to be comical, but neither work. "Diarrhea Runs In The Family" at track 6 isn't funny or creative, just a raw, hollow scatological recording with no humorous content whatsoever. "Overheard in a Wawa Parking Lot" at track 9 is just some more of the blatantly racist crap we had in the previous two BHG releases. If BHG is attempting to grow up, they've still got a long way to go.

Bottom line: if you loved the past two BHG releases and want more of the same, this won't scratch that itch. If you're so into BHG that you'll forgive their misguided attempt at art or mainstream or adult or whatever it is they are attempting here, then this CD is for you.

If you read Don Delillo watch Jackass and think this world is a big Ship of Fools, then BG is for you. This album rocks as BG usually does. Jimmy Pop didn't get over 1300(informed by the BG DVD) on his SATs(when that was a hard thing to do) for nothing; the man is a genius. He is the James Joyce of the Postmodern Suburban Existential Rock/Rap/Pop genre. In a topsy turvy world BG seem like they're all about doo-doo and sex...which they are; but their substance runs deeper so that repeated listenings reveal recursive layers of meaning about The Human Condition. It's like Shakespeare with beats, guitar, and vomiting. If you ever get a chance to see them play I recommend you go. So much more entertaining than the typical manufactured soulless crud that passes(italics) for entertainment nowadays.

Some of the other people that commented on this album talked about some of the "techno" on it, and how "techno" sucks. These people have obviously never listened to a BHG album before. And if this is the first BHG album you are going to buy I highly reccomend you listen to another one of their CD's first.

BHG in general are known for their blend of techno style beats, Immaturity, Punk rock riffs, their occasional casio keyboard style beat and of course their many refrences to pop-culture.

Everytime I have purchased a Blood Hound gang Cd I will give it one listen and immediately appreciate it, and begin to praize them and tell the entire world how under rated this band is. In fact BHG has been a favorite of mine for a long time ever since "Use your fingers was released". I have always bragged that they were going to be huge and maybe even the next Beastie Boys for a different generation. Instant happines surrounds me whenever I put one of their records in.

This album however was not that way. Upon a first listen in fact, I hated it. If you are a true BHG fan I reccomend listening to it at least three times before shelving it. The third time I began to appreciate it more but still did not think it was as great as the last three albums (Use your Fingers, One fierce Beer Coaster and Hooray for Boobies)

This album seems dated, like it came out three years ago.
The first thing you hear when the album comes on is a skit refrencing an Eminem song that was released about two albums ago and around five years ago.

Then "Balls Out" begins to play and thats when I got worried. The rap seemes pushed and contrived and like they are going more for a rock sound then their usual mixture. He even sing slash/screams the chorus which caught me off guard.

The single that has been released "Foxtrot Uniform Charlie Kilo" is catchy and you will catch yourself singing along but you don't really know what you are singing along too. The song seems non-sensical (which in most cases I like but not here)and seems like he was just trying to find words that rhymed and are refrencing sex in some way. And of course each letter in the title of the song spells out everyones faviorite past time, but it's not as funny as it could be and it doesn't really stand out like their past singles.

One of the songs they should have chose to release should have been either "Uhn Tiss Uhn Tiss Uhn Tiss" or "No Hard Feelings" They are easily the strongest songs on the record and are most like their past singles. I also liked "Farting with a walkman on" which is pretty solid and typical of their past albums. I could actually just take these three songs and disreguard the rest of the album altogether.

None of the other songs really standout except for maybe "Ralph Wiggum" which is a good song if you happen to know the Simpsons and have seen the main episode the song is refrencing to. It's just really basic and only really noticable because of all the ralph quotes.

Don't get me wrong I don't hate the album, it's decent it just is no where as good as their past albums, so I hold them to that standard and was mildly disapointed because there hasn't really ever been a song on an album yet that I didn't like until now.

If you are a fan of this band I would definitly buy it just don't count on it being as good as their past albums.

The Bloodhound Gang has always been a secret love of mine. Yes, their stuff is a whole lot of juvenile, but the wordplay tends to be quick and their slicing and dicing of pop-culture usually lands on point. Hefty Fine, unfortunately, seems like a lost bit of meandering. It's like they had to come out with a new album to satisfy their contract, so they phoned one in. There are no really tight rhyme schemes working through the tracks with the exception of 3. Foxtrot Uniform Charlie Kilo, which very obviously is set for their hit on this record and overall it's the closest they come to putting together a song worthy of their previous efforts. The rest of the album tends to favor them trying to put together pop songs with more traditional arrangements. Maybe if we are all lucky the BHG will listen to their own album and turn out something better next time around.

Hefty Find is a schlocky piece of work and should be avoided in favor of listening to One Fierce Beer Coaster a hundred more times.

Okay, this album is terrible.
I mean, when you listen to stuff like Use Your Fingers and Hooray For Boobies (One Fierce Beer Coaster also wasn't great, but I certainly liked it better than Hefty Fine) and then play Hefty Fine, it makes you want to throw it at the wall. Gone are the pop culture references and guitar-laden riffs of the good old days. Now, basically the whole album is about having sex (which I wouldn't really mind if the innuendos were more clever) and the music is so electronically mixed that you honestly start to wonder whether they really used any instruments or whether Jimmy Pop Ali honestly sang a note.

The hidden track was disappointing, compared to the hidden tracks on their other albums, and the fact that Ville Valo sang on Something Diabolical just makes it worse.

Basically, I see this album as a last-ditch attempt to acquire some quick cash and I think the guys were getting a bit desperate.

Not to say that I still don't love Bloodhound Gang, I just think they could've done way better.

Track by track analysis? I think so.

Strictly For The Tardcore- 3/5. Funny but not particularly witty.
Balls Out- 0/5. Completely terrible track.
Foxtrot Uniform Charlie Kilo- 4/5. Innuendos are great but music could've been better.
I'm The Least You Could Do- 2/5.
Farting With A Walkman On- 2/5.
Diarrhea Runs In The Family- 5/5. Possibly the best track on the whole album.
Ralph Wiggum- 4/5. I like the idea for the song, but the tune is flat and depressing.
Something Diabolical- Negative 5/5. Completely awful song, and Ville Valo doesn't help it any.
Overheard In A WaWa Parking Lot- 4/5 only because it made me laugh.
Pennsylvania- 4/5. Great track.
Uhn Tiss Uhn Tiss Uhn Tiss- 4/5. Also great.
No Hard Feelings- 0/5. The whole song is pretty much one line OVER and OVER.
Hidden Track- 1/5. COME ON, BAM MARGERA?!

All in all, this album was a huge letdown and I think Bloodhound Gang needs to step it up the next time around.

i picked up the hooray for boobies cd for a doller at a pawn shop and love it, so i thought i might as well like this. I was surprised with the more rock sound it had. Foxtrot uniform charlie kilo is the single and stands out, the rest of the cd is great (the whole nine actual songs). it takes getting used to.

On of the greatest Cds ever from one of the greatest bands ever. if you like tecno and rock I'd pick this Cd up as soon as possible.

Being a fan of BHG since Use your Fingers, I was expecting a bit more than what I heard on the first few listens. After many listens over the last couple of days, (it's pretty short so I was able to listen th the whole thing all the way through more than a few times)it has grown on me. It is impossible to compare this to one fierce beer coaster or hurray for boobies, this is a completly different release. If you want a repeat of those, this cd is not for you. The songs may not be as clever or funny as the ones from the past (dissapointment at first) but they show a refinement that was missing from their earlier releases. This is still a funny album, but the humor isn't as "in your face" as the songs from their last releases. To the reviewers that gave this album a bad review on the first or second day of it's release......give it some time. The best things in life are those that are an acquired taste. While I agree that Heafty Fine was, at first, a bit of a let down......it will now reside in my CD player for awhile........and again in the months and years to come. This is the BloodHoundGang.....this is how they sound now. For a band to progress they must change. Anyone who would write a bad review on the first day of an album's release is not truely a fan.
One negative worth mentioning, in my opinion is the length of the album.....kinda short.
Buy Heafty Fine.......listen to it......listen to it again.....listen to it again.......then listen to it again.....you will see what I mean!
Why are you still reading this? Go buy the cd!

I've listened to Hefty Fine about 20 times now, and I'm really starting to like it. It definitely is different from that of One Fierce Beer Coaster and Horray For Boobies, but I don't think that is a bad thing.

What's lacking- The lyrics, the best part of BHG has been Jimmy Pop Ali's humorous and sometimes brilliant lyrics. In Hefty Fine, some lyrics are still laughable, but most sound like that of a "normal band." The lack of DJ Q-Ball.

What's improved- The music. Lord, I think the musicianship is so vastly improved it amazing. Lupus' guitar is 10 times better than HFB. The cover. It is sickening, but hysterical at the same time. I would expect nothing less. The inside picture is great too.

Strictly for the Tardcore- 10/10 Its only 5 seconds long, but hysterical every time.
Balls Out- 2/10 The intro is too long, and it's just not a very good song overall. Kind of reminds me of "Yummy Down on This"
Foxtrot Uniform Charlie Kilo- 10/10 One of the songs I can listen to over and over.
I'm the Least You Could Do- 10/10 The guitar is great in the beginning, and chorus rocks too.
Farting with a Walkman On- 8/10 Good song, pretty funny lyrics.
Diarrhea Runs in the Family- 0/10 More disturbing than a Bea Arthur & Martha Stewart porno.
Ralph Wiggum- 9/10 Great song, but as an avid Simpsons fan, I have a hard time placing a lot of the lines. Funny stuff though.
Something Diabolical- 10/10 Another great Lupus song. The dude who sings the "Heaven may be..." part really adds to the song.
Overheard in a Wawa Parking Lot- 6/10 Funny the first time, but not that good after that.
Pennsylvania- 9/10 This song contains the best line in the history of the world. "We are Baldwin brothers, not the good one but the others." AHHHH good stuff. This is one of the songs on here that has great Jimmy Pop lyrics.
Uhn Tiss Uhn Tiss Uhn Tiss- 9/10 Another great lyrical one. It too me a while figure out what the name meant, but it's the sound of the high hat and bass drum.
No Hard Feelings- 9/10 Great song arrangement. From other reviews, it seems this is the favorite.

So I would whole-heartedly recommend this one to just about anyone. It definitely isn't classic BHG, but I think it is almost an improvement. So don't expect the same immature humor from BHG as you've seen in the past, but expect more of a pretty damn good album.

Just beucase George Dionne did not like it, do not think it is a bad albumn, it is great, very humorus, and very neat to hear after a few years of nothing from them. I live in the same state as them and there are some inside jokes about pa in this albumn, maybe that is why i like it more, but i was impressed.