WCKR SPGT - Shoot The Man In The Tree CD

This time around, Wckr Spgt consists of the original three founding members (Joel Huschle, Mark Givens, and Dave Carpenter), the drumming talents of Kyle Brodie (Nothing Painted Blue, etc) and the engineering mastery of Steve Folta (The Uncalled For) who also lends his voice and his spot welding skills to the project. Kyle is no stranger to the music of Wckr Spgt; he joined them (along with bandmates Franklin Bruno and Peter Hughes) on "Everybody's Dead (Oh, No)" as well as an East Coast tour in 1995. Vocalist Joel Huschle delivers the goods that have made him the powerful force in the Indie Scene that he is today; we get to hear bassist/guitarist Dave Carpenter's lyric-writing prowess again, a component that adds yet another dimension to this many-sided band; and the musical stylings of Mark Givens are just that - stylings.

The 14 songs on this release - from the first track, the excessively hummable "Bump", to the last track, a nightclubby version of the 1992 Jupa Records B-side "Where Did I Stop?" - explore the varied tastes and talents of the members. There's a banda-flavored track penned by Dave ("Hector Stuffs Birds"), hard-hitting political commentary from Mark ("Louisiana Meltdown)", a stream of subconsciousness rocker from Joel ("Eight Track Tapes and Pick Up Sticks") and even a cover of a Bee Gees classic ("Whisper Whisper" from 1969's Odessa). The Rock and Roll show-stoppers include a riff on the music scene ("Indie Fatigue"), a love anthem ("It'll Be Better, Earwig") a hard-hitting sing-a-long ("Rip Off The Top"), and the already-classic "Trash Car", conceived by Dave's six-year-old son Jack. Also included are the popular hits "Paris Hilton Video" and "Happy About the Food", two songs available on the website ( wckrspgt ) but remixed and mastered for your listening pleasure. To top it all off, the distinctive talents of artist Gus Fink grace the cover of this unique package.

"Shoot the Man in the Tree", which takes its title from the classic 1983 song of the same name, comes along at just the right time and sounds just right. It's almost perfect.