Cake - Showroom of Compassion
I have been a fan of Cake for a very long time. Since 6th grade to be exact. Comfort Eagle is one of my favorite albums of all time. So I was incredibly excited when I heard they would be finally releasing a new LP. Then, I heard the single "Sick Of You", and to be honest I was disappointed. It didn't catch my attention at all. It actually made me apprehensive about buying Showroom of Compassion. But I decided to put some trust in my history with them and purchase it anyways. (The physical copy of Showroom comes with a temporary tattoo, by the way. Which is such a Cake thing to do.)
The first 5 or 6 tracks were decent.. I wasn't blown away or drawn in, but it felt good to hear new Cake nonetheless. I was starting to worry that I had paid fifteen bucks for a temporary tattoo when, after the single "Sick Of You", the album TOOK THE EFF OFF. The rest of Showroom was exactly what I had been hoping for, if not more. John McCrea's voice has gotten noticeably better. He belts it this time around. He still has that lovable singing/talking quality, but on Showroom there are a few different places where he really lets it all out. The guitar riffs, bass lines, and percussion have always been money for Cake. They still are. The horns are still present in a big way, as is the classic rattling noisemaker that seems to slip its way into every Cake song.
The best way I can sum up my experience with Showroom is to draw upon the similarity of reuniting with an old friend. You run into them in the airport or bump into them at the store; time has taken its toll, and you've drifted apart. But you sit down for a chat anyways, for old times sake. The first little while they tell you their stories, and to be honest you aren't that interested, but you nod your head and listen to be courteous. But then they say something or show a mannerism that reminds you why you loved them and their company in the first place. After that, the talk comes easy and naturally. You start to rebuild the bridge. Cake closes with "Italian Guy" -- Showrooms version of their classic song "Opera Singer". It's the perfect way to send you off. And as with that old friend, in the end you are reminiscing old times, laughing until you have tears in your eyes.
The Showroom of Compassion is showcasing an older, wiser, more mature Cake. They have experienced more, and they are more weathered. But the underlying charm they have always had is still there. It just has a more emotional twist to it. Both the album and the band, are better for it.
-- Aj de Lisle (January 26th, 2011)
