Review of The Ham's debut EP 'Ordinary Pet Food'
- Jonah Hoy
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
Jonah Hoy reviews Ordinary Pet Food, the debut EP from The Ham which is the new techno project of Bertie Kelly, frontman of Limerick punk duo Japanese Jesus.
Pinning down creativity is hard because it's almost as if we only see the most popular iterations of peoples' craft unfold. Many have different lives and outlets to express what is very deep inside them. Like people, creativity is complicated and a mixed bag, our man Bertie Kelly being a case in point.
You may know Kelly as half of the punk/hardcore duo, Japanese Breakfast. On February 4th, Kelly, through his new project The Ham, released Ordinary Pet Food, a techno electronic project trading in guitars for lasers and hypnotic 140 BPM. Techno and punk have a lot of crossover in their DIY communities. Their ethos and attitudes in the scenes from the late 80s and early 90s saw a transition and crossover creating techno-punk, electro punk, and ravepunk subgenres.
Kelly's project, The Ham, remains true to its hardcore roots because throughout the EP, even between the harsh beats and futuristic compositions, it's still punk. Punk vocals over techno scratches, where the crowd dance and headbop more than beat each other in the mosh pit.
The first track, Becoming the Ham, opens up like a video game chase sequence before you hit start and actually get to play. Once Kelly's vocals kick in with the distorted, "I am now become the Ham," I imagine him grabbing the microphone in a ratty band shirt, singing like Iggy while his DJ is in the back flipping knobs like nobody's business.
Kelly's project, The Ham, remains true to its hardcore roots because throughout the EP, even between the harsh beats and futuristic compositions, it's still punk. Punk vocals over techno scratches
Can't Afford to Die is the second track and the most techno song on the EP release. It has lasers and futuristic bells and whistles, which I found myself bopping my head constantly to. It has a more ominous and sinister feel, not quite punk but industrial, almost dystopian. When I think of this track, I can see it being played in an alternate timeline of Dragon Ball Z. Trunks warns the gang what happens if they do not stop Cell; he shows them the future of destruction, decay, and the monster who just killed his best friend and mentor.
The one thing I appreciate is that even though it gets into the groove of the punk algorithm, there are quite a few surprises. When Kelly adds the weird whooshes and transitions, they seem goofy but work. In Homicide, it does the odd little bells and beeps to transition into an outro of melodic guitar that flows kind of calmly and ends the EP nicely.
It wouldn't be a punk outlet if it didn't have lyrics about politicians and a smart ass attitude of irony in its songs. There is a line in Homicide, I can't get out of my head, "Scream if you wanna get hit." It has you bopping your head and nodding, repeating that over and over again.
Ordinary Pet Food is available on CD from our online store.
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