Edinburgh Fringe Festival Review: Dead Cat Bounce – Caged Heat

Dead Cat Bounce are (L-R) Damo, Jim, Mick and Shane

Dead Cat Bounce: Caged Heat (@deadcatbounceie)
Pleasance Courtyard: Pleasance One, 10:30pm, 12-28 Aug
£12/£10.50 Concession (edfringe.com)

http://www.edfringe.com/whats-on/comedy/dead-cat-bounce-caged-heat

Three-word review: Comedy rock gods. Four Mikes

I will begin this review by unashamedly admitting that I love Dead Cat Bounce. I have followed them for a while now and I regularly listen to their two live albums on Spotify, so I fully expected this show to be nothing less than hilarious as I excitedly queued in the drizzle outside Pleasance One. Having said that, my first exposure to the band was at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2009 and though I remember laughing like a lunatic at the songs, I also distinctly recall them attempting some sketch-comedy segments between each tune that fell flat – a couple of them were greeted with complete silence by the capacity audience. Having not seen them live since, going in for their 2011 show “Caged Heat” I wondered whether they had decided to drop the sketches and focus on the music, which is their obvious strength, or if we would see another pick-and-mix show with different material.

Clearly, since 2009 DCB have tightened up their hour-long act to create a tight, impressive set interspersed with some excellent scripted banter to replace the unsuccessful skits of yesteryear. The band, comprised of Damo (drums), Jim (guitar/lead vocal), Mick (keyboard) and Shane (bass), are all very talented musicians and singers in their own right and they make up an extremely competent harmonic rock and roll band even when you put the gags to one side – which I think sets them apart from many musical comedy “novely acts”, as Damo describes them. Look out particularly for Shane’s bass solo during the introductions which clearly marks him out as one of the greatest comedy rock bassists of all time.

The set contains many familiar songs for existing fans, kicking off strongly with the anthemic and hilarious “Weeping Of The Willows” (introduced by Jim as ‘a damning indictment of the American ideal set against the backdrop of characters from The Wind In The Willows’) and following up with audience favourites such as “Christians In Love” (‘rubbing away like they’re getting a stain off a carpet’), “Switzerland”, “Rugby” and the delightfully double-entendre-laden faux-gangster rap “Firemen” (‘we got four motherfuckin’ firemen in the truck/But we ain’t got no motherfuckin’ hose’). The lads also introduce a quartet of new tracks, the best of which is probably titled “Kayaking” but an honourable mention must go to “This Wolf Howls Alone” featuring Shane on guest lead vocals after the band engage in an instrument swap, during which time he fails to pick up a different instrument – asserting that he “doesn’t like to cheat on his bass”, though he “does like seeing her with other men”. The show’s slight lull comes with “Human Statue”, which frankly isn’t the funniest song DCB have written and slows the momentum of the show before their big finish with melodic merch-flogger “Let’s Make Love”, which may not be the full title of the track, but I hesitate to reveal the rest for fear of giving the joke away. It does, however, allow the gig to end on a high while one lucky couple in the front row are given a complimentary DCB album, which I thought was a lovely touch. Had I been sat a few feet to the right, it could have been me. Maybe next year!

As I mentioned earlier, in addition to the music there is plenty of banter that flies back and forth between the lads which, while clearly scripted, is polished and refined to the point where it comes across as being very natural. The majority of the exchanges fall under the premise of Jim playing the straight, serious front man trying to explain the deeper meanings behind the show’s title expressed through the lyrics in his songs and unmodestly bigging up his own ability (“I kinda think of myself as a young James Dean“), while simultaneously getting frustrated as the rest of the band poke fun at his self-appointed integrity (“You know James Dean was 24 when he died? You’re more like an older, unsuccessful, less talented James Dean“). The banter ebbs and flows without overshadowing the music as the main attraction, and without wanting to recount too much of it for those who haven’t been to the show, a highlight came as Shane denounced Damo for ruining the sincerity of “This Wolf Howls Alone” by asserting that he was “standing in a puddle of [his] own integrity”.

Slight personal disappointments for me came in the form of the band having to disappear without an encore, which therefore meant that favourites such as Four Lads, Mary and Overenthusiastic Contraceptive Lady (‘why don’t you just let me in?’) were missing from the set, but overall it didn’t detract from the spectacle of Dead Cat Bounce in full flow. Whether you are a fan of toe-tapping rock and roll, comedic lyrical wordsmithery or simply getting the chance to see four incredibly talented young performers at the very top of their game, you’ll find Dead Cat Bounce unmissable.