SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: CRAZY TOWN -THE GIFT OF GAME (25th ANNIVERSARY EDITION)

CRAZY TOWN
THE GIFT OF GAME (25th ANNIVERSARY EDITION)
REAL GONE MUSIC

Hold onto your socks, folks, because we’re about to dive headfirst into the mind-blowing masterpiece that is Crazy Town’s The Gift of Game. Now, some might say it’s not the greatest thing since sliced bread, but hey, it’s got that special vintage charm that takes you on a trip down memory lane. Not for the faint-hearted, youngsters, so cover your ears as we revisit this 25 year celebratory release.

Oscar Wilde once said, ‘Music is the art which is most nigh to tears and memory.’ With lyrics that reek of depravity, emotional, nostalgic appeal is activated. 1999s release of Crazy Town’s nu metal mix of rap and rock takes the listener on a somewhat awkward journey… so profound, it reeks of various odours and… stickiness, perhaps a bit nauseating, we are smack bang right back, welcoming in the millennium at a back yard bender with nothing but bad decisions – oh man it’s uncomfortable.

Bret Hadley “Epic” Mazur and the late Seth Brooks Binzer, aka Shifty Shellshock, of Crazy Town, rocked the nu-metal scene. Their debut album, The Gift of Game, sold 2.5 million copies, resonating with a specific demographic, which can’t be ignored. Even the album’s art is explosively suggestive, making boys’ fantasies a reality. Tracks like “Lollipop Porn” certainly cater to the audacity of entitled imagination.

“Butterfly” was the third single released from The Gift of Game, cleverly placed after “Toxic” and “Darkside” which had rallied a hefty following. “Butterfly” is a love song with the late Binzer saying, ‘…Instead of writing a male chauvinistic song, I was going to write something sweet and nice to a girl I cared about.’ With lyrics like, ‘Come my lady/Come-Come my lady/ You’re my butterfly, sugar baby,” how can you argue… be still, my beating heart.

Is this album really that bad, though… sure it is lacklustre… maybe, but it is nostalgic, and let’s not forget, sometimes all we need is a hefty dose of nostalgia to make our hearts skip a beat. With the recent loss of Binzer, it is vital to note that Crazy Town captured a historical moment. This cultural aesthetic blended well with the Korn/Limp Bizkit’s Family Values era. Although we may be critical, I would argue that we all certainly drank the Kool-Aid, and my was it sweet. Fair warning to the PC youngsters of today: this album might be a little too spicy for your delicate ears.

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