The Giraffes Show 07.25.09

You can tell you're not in store for some homogenized, predictable mainstream rock just by looking at the band picture inside the CD booklet of the third full-length release by New York's the Giraffes. Few have the chutzpah to cultivate a Rollie Fingers-esque handlebar mustache in this day and age, but the Giraffes singer, Aaron Lazar, is seen as clear as day modeling one. Additionally, few rock bands nowadays can be described as sounding like they'd fit snuggly in the guitar-heavy grunge/alt rock scene of the early '90s, without coming off like a third rate Nirvana or Pearl Jam rip-off, but the Giraffes manage to somehow pull it off. Add to it whacked-out lyrics and unpredictable musical detours, and you have a hard-to-pinpoint style that morphs from Black Sabbath ("Having Fun"), to the Reverend Horton Heat ("Million $ Man") in the blink of an eye, before recalling such art rockers as Alice Donut ("Wage Earner"). With rock becoming easier and easier to neatly categorize in the early 21st century, it warms the old heart when a band like the Giraffes comes along.