In rock & roll, there's sometimes a price to pay for being too smart, and
the Mumps
were a band who suffered for imagining their audience was as clever as they were. Like a less pretentious, less Eurocentric, and harder-rocking version of
Sparks
,
weren't precious about themselves or their music, but they had zero interest in dumbing down their witty observations on various aspects of contemporary culture. And just because you could dance to their music, that didn't mean everyone was going to understand the punch lines. Of course, it didn't help that in their 1975 to 1979 lifespan, their lead singer,
Lance Loud
, was a reality TV star before anyone had figured out what that meant, or that
Loud
and keyboard player and primary songwriter
Kristian Hoffman
were out-and-proud gay men who were certainly aware of how being out of the closet had recently killed
Jobriath
's career before it could get up on its feet. If stardom or even a record deal eluded
in their time, that didn't change the fact they wrote wickedly funny pop songs that could actually rock, and 2021's
Rock & Roll This, Rock & Roll That: Best Case Scenario, You've Got Mumps
brings together 21 should-have-been-hits drawn from the two singles they issued, studio outtakes, and plentiful demos that confirm how ridiculously good they could be.
was an outstanding frontman whose charisma and savvy more than compensated for his (very) occasional failings as a vocalist, and he and his bandmates knew how to make the most of
Hoffman
's great tunes, such as "That Fatal Charm," "Crocodile Tears," and the title cut. This marks the third time
' recorded legacy has been released on CD (following 1994's
Fatal Charm
and 2005's
How I Saved the World
, both out of print), and the main thing that sets this apart from the previous collections is the presence of two songs from the pre-
Mumps
group
, which are fine but a bit thin compared to what came just a year or two later. That said, this set is well packaged, has wonderful essays from friends, family, and former members of the group, and boasts fine remastering, making it the best presentation of this music to date. If ever there was a band from the 1970s New York new wave scene that deserved wider exposure in the 2020s, it's most certainly
, and
is an ideal opportunity to find out what you've (probably) been missing. ~ Mark Deming