I am excited to report that this week we have a review from our first ever RECURRING ARTIST on CD-ROM Rabbit Hole. Within the time between now and our last Inter-Review, I have had the privilege to get to know Fuzzy Slippers much better as a band, as well as people. I am so thrilled to be back today to discuss their newest track "Cars"!
For those who are unfamiliar or may have missed our previous Inter-Review, you can click HERE to read it, but in the meantime, here is a quick refresher:
Fuzzy Slippers consists of
Andy Walsh on rhythm guitar and vocals
Ryan Shello on lead guitar and backing vocals
Mickey Collins on bass and backing vocals
Nick Thomas on drums
All caught up now? Good? Good! Let's get to the review!
"Cars" was released by Fuzzy Slippers on October 15th and is their second single (following "Feel Sick") off of their upcoming album "Let's Get Nervous". Their album will be releasing this winter and if you are in the Philadelphia area, I highly advise you to go see them perform for their album release show at Creep Records (2966 Richmond Street) on January 25th, 2025 with special guests Hot Seat and Trash Boy. AND, anyone who buys a ticket to the release show will also receive a digital download of the album A WHOLE WEEK before it officially comes out!
"Cars" had a lot of pressure on it trying to follow-up such an incredible track that is "Feel Sick", but thankfully, it manages to pull it off as a great successor, properly building expectations for its upcoming album. After the success of "Feel Sick" it would be easy for Fuzzy Slippers to say "hey, that really worked, let's just stick with it!" But instead, they chose the more admirable and respectable route which is to release a new song that further exemplifies what the band is capable of. They did not attempt to capture lightning in a bottle twice by repeating what worked previously, but they did, inadvertently, succeed at capturing lightning twice with this song. "Cars" is not just more of the same, it is a completely new and fresh track that stands on its own but still shares a cohesive vibe. This song is less ska-centric but still falls into the self-proclaimed genre of "anxiety-punk". If you loved "Feel Sick" you will also love "Cars" (and not to speak too soon, but I have a sneaking suspicion that we will all love the full-length album too!)
"Cars" starts with catchy guitar strums and is greeted with bass, drums, and another electric guitar with an almost dreamy tone. The vocals kick in, painting the picture of a drunk skateboarding, speeding down a busy street while cars are hurdling passed them. A lyric that instantly stuck out to me on my very first listen was "I am a human road rash" which, despite being grotesque, beautifully paints the picture of the scene. The chorus pipes in with a great play on Bob Dylan's song "Blowin' In The Wind" which takes the lyrics
"How many roads must a man walk down
Before you call him a man?"
and flips them on its head with,
"How many roads must a man walk down before
he’s hit by a car?"
The lyrics continue to tell stories of various accidents, such as eating shit off a pavement from a skateboard crash, getting hit by a car, colliding with "Old Pete, who sleeps outside" and tumbling off of the overpass. Continuing with the tradition of writing very funny, yet real, emotions and scenarios while presenting it all in a catchy and digestible fashion that demands to be sung along with. The ending of the song has some dual vocals that go "and the cars
(how many roads must a man walk down before)" which repeats three times before a final escalation of instrumentals the dramatically closes with a "goddammit motherfucking what are the words" yelled from the background.
While preparing for this review, I asked Mickey of Fuzzy Slippers if there was any information they wanted me to share, and the first thing that came to mind was
"Those background vocals were our producer's idea, and it's brilliant, but it was HARD to learn how to sing that and play the song at the same time. I personally didn't really nail it live until waaaayyy after we recorded it."
It is a beautiful touch to help close off the song and get the chorus stuck in your head, and huge shoutout to Mark Watter at Headroom Studios for suggesting that awesome addition to the song.
Overall, I am so happy I get to be hear discussing another top-tier Fuzzy Slippers track, and I cannot wait to come back in a few months to review their debut album. Fuzzy Slippers does not disappoint, and if you haven't streamed these two singles yet, what are you doing? Stop reading this and go listen! Do it! NOW! I'm being so serious! GO. LISTEN. NOW!
All links for Fuzzy Slippers are HERE!
(https://linktr.ee/askfuzzyslippers)
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