CD Review: Zolof the Rock and Roll Destroyer – Jalopy Go Far

Did someone say Zoloft? This 5 piece power-pop band from Philidelphia certainly does bring about doses of happiness, with their incredibly infectious songs and lyrics. While they come from a state more well known for its hardcore and metal bands, Zolof The Rock & Roll Destroyer has certainly created a widely accessible genre of it’s own, attracting a large fan base of all ages.

The band manages to blend catchy tunes with melodic riffs to produce some of the most addictive and fun music you will ever hear. There is not one sad or depressing song on the whole album, as each of the 10 tracks are filled with non-stop pop energy. Most of this comes from the works of front-woman Rachel Minton, who provides an upbeat and fun set of vocals. The cute/bubbliness side of her is plainly evident, with song names like ‘Super OK’ and ‘Mean Old Coot’, and with her excessive use of “Bada du du’s” and “Go tiger!”

We are greeted with a loud It’s 1, 2, 3, Chop! upon listening to Mean Old Coot, the first track of the album. This song effectively sets the mood for the listener, with melodic synthesizer tunes and cheerful lyrics. It’s also a remake of the same song which was released on their S/T, but with extra keyboard lines and faster vocals.

Super OK and Moment, the next two tracks, are slightly slower and more serious in terms of lyrics. The happy mood is not broken though, as Minton manages to use “Du Du Du’s” in pretty much all the verses.

Zolof picks up it’s pace in the next track, The Hot Situation. Rachel’s use of ‘Watch Out!/Heads Up!/Oww!’ in pretty much half the song help make the chorus extremely spunky and memorable.

The next track, Wonderful Awkward is a minute-and-a-half short track which is basically about self-doubt and reflection. This is another slow song which I found to be pretty boring, as the good tracks tend to be the faster and perky ones.

Synthesizer beats make a return in How Bout It, and along with the random background gang vocals, helps get the ‘Be Happy!’ message across effectively.

The second half of the album seems to get a little dull and repetitive as the songs lose their infectious energy. While I Owe You manages to redeem itself a bit with the contagious “Du Du’s” and “Na Na’s”, I couldn’t really make sense of Scream And Run and Running Starts Will Only Get You Faster To The Place That Will Make You Say Ouch. The lyrics are either really random ( So I say… bless your little pumper, hope your bum wing’s better) or really repetitive (And I’ll say hey so what’s new and how are you x16). The guitar riffs and keyboard parts are still very lively though, and they manage to make up for the somewhat boring vocals.

I would say that Don’t Mope (I’m not going in order anymore) is probably the best track on the whole album. The guitar solo and riffs gives the song a quirky, spacey feel, which mixes well with the mood. The good songs are doubtlessly the fast and positive ones, and it’s a shame the band didn’t stick with the happy mood (which was evident in their S/T) throughout the whole album.

This is a very solid album overall, something definitely worth getting. While the tracks may be short (none over 3 minutes) and sometimes repetitive, the catchy tunes will grow on you quickly, and you’ll soon learn to love the uniqueness of the music Zolof brings.