Want - 3OH!3

I've been a fan of 3OH!3 for about a year or so now. I found them totally by accident, after going through the myspace of The Chain Gang of 1974, a new band I had found on a journaling site, I saw 3OH!3 in their top eight. At first I though they were local because one of the roads in our town is 303. I found out that not only the band was from a few thousand miles away in Colorado but they also rocked me in a way I had never been rocked before. About nine months later, I had the chance to see them three times at warped tour. I picked up the CD and it completely blew me away.

1. Tapp - This song starts off the record just like 3OH!3 seems to like to start anything off, with a big bang. It's an "instrumental" if you'd say, all synth beats and electronic sounds. It's a great intro to what the band really sounds like and sets you up to go right into the next song.

2. Punkbitch - Strong start as to the first real song of the album. At times the lyrics seem a little mismatched but once you start to listen to it more, it all seems to fit together. The chorus is more dance driven, meant to get you on your feet while the rest of the song shows the Colorado duo's rap influences.

3. Don't Trust Me - This is the first single off of the band's new album, the video was just recently dropped on MTV2. One of the most heavily synth pop and dance influenced tracks. It gives a view of glamourizing the party scene. X's on the back of your hands/wash them in the bathroom to drink like the bands/and your setlist/you stole off the stage/had red and purple lipstick all over the page.

4. Chokechain - This track was originally on 3OH!3's first EP. To me, it's definitely one of their heavier rap influenced tracks. I got yo' dogs on a collar, balla/So how you like that?/Chokechain for their necks, and I don't think they bite back. The newer version is only a few seconds longer than the EP version but sounds more polished and put together.

5. I'm Not Your Boyfriend, Baby - Another very dance fueled track based on some of the glamour in the party and rock scene. These children learn from cigarette burns, fast cars, fast women and cheap drinks/It feels right/All these asphyxiated, self-medicated; take the white pill you'll feel alright. The chorus is heavily rap influenced which is a good contrast with the pop verses. You can catch me on the speedtrain/Beeper in a three-way/Shinin' with the gleam chain/And your honey givin' me brain. Another very catchy piece.

6. I Can't Do It Alone - Through my first listening, I remember thinking this song was just another danceable song from 3OH!3. After a few listens, I could tell that the lyrics were a little more than that. So tell me baby, pretty baby, that this house is not a graveyard/Tell me how to stay strong and carry you home/Over corpses of our long-lost fathers and our unborn daughters/Cause God damn it, I can't do it alone. There are parts that can be related to a sort of cry for help and others that can, yet again, be based on party scenes and seduction. I'm not impressed with you/Pink drinks that seem to get the best of you/Rock late and sleep until the sun sets/I'd talk but you took the tongue I talk with.

7. Starstrukk - This may actually be one of my least favorite tracks on the CD but I still like it. The song starts off strong, heavy synths and then seems to fade. It's still very catchy and though the beat seems to slip a little, the lyrics stick with you. I think I should know how to make love to something innocent without leaving my fingerprints out/Now, L-O-V-E's just another word I never learned to pronounce.

8. Richman - Richman is one of the main songs that seems to give a look at so called rock and roll scenes. It describes a good amount of Hollywood types, DJ's and booze. I ain't callin' for a close-up/No clubs, no cars, bitches with the nose jobs/No dubs, no stars/ I'm 'a do it how I always have/Whiskey in a 40 bag/Pissin in the alleyway out back where the party's at.

9. Photofinnish - This is one of the only songs on the whole record that I have a hard time actually analyzing what it's about. I would like to say it catches me because of the amazing beat but that just makes it sound like a pointless song and I'm sure this song means something to someone. I think this is a good song to be very open to anyone's interpretation. You always hedging on a safe bet/Walking a tight rope with a safety net/Face it, it doesn't mean shit unless you take a wiff/Shush baby shut your mouth cause you're not part of this, this time.

10. Still Around - This is the only 3OH!3 song to ever make me cry. It's nothing like the rest of the album, the only instrument on this track is a piano and what sounds like the occasional cymbals. I want to call this song a ballad but it seems to be so much more than that. And I know what you're thinking/That won't stop this drinking/It's the least I can do/Cause this life is anything but certain/When they close the final curtain/You'll get a glimpse of the truth.

11. Holler 'Til You Pass Out - Another song originally from their first CD only this time it's been extended about thirty seconds. A few of the lines poke fun at some other rappers who take themselves a little too seriously. You'sa punk bitch if you don't know bout Boulder/Your girl's a freak cause that's what I told her/You think you're tight but my ice gets colder/In Baller-ado fight you with my soldiers/You know we clean, never smokin' that doja/The gang sign cause that's what we all love.

12. Colorado Sunrise - This is honestly my favorite track on the entire record and a great one to end with. I love it so much, I've seriously considered getting a line from it on my body forever. Once you really listen to the words you can tell what a sweet song it is and some of the things said to whoever it's being written about are just plain adorable. On top of the sweet things said to said person, it shows the flaws of the artist. I got no car and never cared because I got no place to go/But in a room a single wall, I couldn't pay a plant to grow/You can try to make this pretty, pick up all my dirty clothes/And if you never really get me then I guess you'll never know the/Trainwreck that I am/And I am what I am what I am.

All in all, I love this CD. It really sticks with you, the lyrics are easy to get stuck in your head and fun to sing along with. The tracks I dislike, I'll still listen to because they're just plain good. I would for sure advise people to go out and buy this album. I would advise people even more to go out and see their live show, which is a million times more intense than the CD.

-Tabitha Jones
http://www.myspace.com/missjonesftw

To check out some music from 3OH!3, head over to their myspace.