I’m never comfortable when I’m not in on the joke, and there is definitely something going on here. This is the third release from this Finnish band who have been around since 2005, and in an attempt to find out more I went to their website and now I wish I hadn’t. There is something disturbing about the drummer.. I mean, his name is Butch Muffdiver and the outfit he’s wearing well…let’s just say it’s pink and leave it at that (their site can be found at www.frankieandgator.com if you’re brave enough). But, the really annoying thing is that this is one of those albums where everyone is having a joke and a fun time but these guys can play, really play, and the result is a pop/prog/power metal album that is very melodic and full of hooks. The twin vocal style also works, and the result is something that in many ways reminds me of Alberto y Lost Trios Paranoiaswho were a wonderful band who took the piss out of everyone but it worked just because they were so good at it.
I bet their gigs are fun to attend, but if you look past all of the humour you will find a band that are deadly serious about their music and this album is definitely worth investigating. As they say themselves, “Burma will take you to another world filled with aliens, voodoo magic and bananas. There is no escape from the deep jungles of Burma”.
