Pickle Power!

FUNHOLE
DIME STORE SUIT
PIMP JOHN PAUL RECORDS

We've never forgotten you, Caitlan S. Haskell. Caitlan lives (or lived—we don't know where she is these days) in Brea, and about three years ago, she dropped us a very peeved note complaining about how we're always ignoring Funhole, obviously her favorite band. "It can't be that you haven't heard of them," Caitlan shrieked. "It's beginning to look like you are snubbing them on purpose." Well, Caitlan, we weren't. After all, it's not our fault that Funhole never bothered to mail us any music until a few weeks ago. Their name is a turn-off, though—it's so pervy-sounding, like, "Oooh, Daddy, put your pickle in my funhole!" You know, that kinda thing. But now we have Funhole music in our hands, so we suppose we ought to do something with it. And you know, it's not bad: tough and meaty guitar rock, with a scraggly voiced lead singer who sounds like he has either been gargling with Lysol or was born without a neck—or both. Adequate bar noise it is, probably way better live than this CD makes them out to be. The kicker, though, is the sax that cuts the songs up, smoothing over and prettifying the rougher edges and occasional aural clichés (their guitar man too often thinks he's in a metal band) and making them shine much brighter. Their lyrics aren't earth-shaking, mostly oft-told tales of trauma and toil, but they're convincing enough to make you believe they've lived every syllable. They toss off a wonderfully muscle-bound cover of "Can't Hardly Wait," a tune from what they call the "greatest rock band of our time, the Replacements," which we can't argue with. So, Caitlan, there you have it. We have heard the Funhole, and we have deemed the Funhole good. You now have our permission to go forth and acquire a real life.

Info: (714) 293-4923; www.funholerocks.com; info@funholerocks.com.

OC and Long Beach bands and musicians! Mail your CDs and tapes (along with your vital contact info, plus any impending performance dates) for possible review to: Locals Only,OC Weekly, P.O. Box 10788, Costa Mesa, CA 92627-0247.