Bowling For Soup - Manchester Academy 1 - 21.10.02

Do you like Beer? Yes!!! Do You Like Pizza? You need to ask!!! Do You Like Boobies? Hell, yeah!!! They've summed up exactly what their about from the outset just incase it wasn't clear to start with. Bowling For Soup are an eight legged punk pop Peter Pan monster. Forever young and Beavis & Butthead made real they've delivered the biggest kick up the ass the rock scene has seen since it glanced away from it's navel and made the shock confession it was just full of middle class white boys moaning that their girlfriends have left them until Bowling For Soup came along. BFS, as they will be known from now on, speak out to the kids who's relationships last no longer than a week before moving onto the next chick and who's biggest dilema in live if whether to eat in KFC or Burger King - it really goes no deeper than that - and that's why tonight the kids are out in force fresh faced and stuffed to the brim with pizza for the night of their lives.

"We like fat people don't we? Chris is Fat and he's my best friend in the whole world - just look at his fat ass!!!!" Jaret shouts to the audience to which 2000 kids cheer back. You could say Chris is the Cartman of the group, but with a larger than life personality (as well as a larger than life ass) the comparison is incidental. A flip of a plectrum here, a flip of plectrum there. A funny face here, a funny face there. And then come the end of the show he drops the final punch line with his ass on full display. As a show of solidarity several chicks lift their T's and with a beer in one hand and boobies on display we only need the pizza's to be in Bowling For Soup heaven.

"Girl All The Bad Guys Want", "Emily" and "The Bitch Song" are what's brought them all here though and everything else is just a bonus. Imagine Sum 41's older slightly retarded brothers picking up instruments and playing the most neanderthal rock music known to man, before realising that our most primitive needs are not being met and that infact Bowling For Soup are the most natural rush of energy to the system you could wish for. Never one's to take things too seriously they play a midset melody of Avril Lavigne's "Complicated", Nelly's "Hot in Herre", Pink's "Lets Get This Party Started", Eminem's "Without Me" before ending with Shaggy and Raywon's "Angel". For most bands that would be enough karaoke fun for the night, but later they go on to tackle Queen's "We Will Rock You" and end the night with Bryan Adams "Summer Of 69". If that doesn't prove to you that they are the most self-depreciating, funny and welcome relief the rock scene has had in years then you guys clearly don't deserve a band like Bowling for Soup.

Alex McCann

**********
Post your Bowling For Soup reviews / comments on the Message Board
**********