‘Manic Pixie Dream Boy’ is the latest release from the one man, folk punk act of Human Kitten or rather, the sad human that is Elijah Llinas. Citing influences such as Lemuria, The Front Bottoms and Joyce Manor, he’s created an album that’s packed full of tongue-in-cheek tracks – the majority of them absolutely stink of sardonic, sarcastic lyrics. However, saying that, there’s still something pretty deep and meaningful about each song, despite the onset of smirks and giggles they can bring.
Opening with ‘San Diego’, it’s evident that Human Kitten knows what he’s doing. Armed with just his voice and his guitar, he uses his strong and melodic vocals to demonstrate his talent when it comes to wearing his heart on his sleeve. ‘Philadelphia’ and ‘Thee Hours Of Sleep’ follow a similar vein – unwavering vocals are the focal point of these tracks, as Human Kitten dispenses a plethora of tracks that connect with his audience. Though the lyrics ‘Feminist Girl (Interlude)’ could be made stronger – “I wish I could be a feminist girl”. Human Kitten, you can definitely be a feminist even if you’re male.
There are also some incredibly empowering tracks. ‘Imperfect Stranger’ is a prime example; lyrics such as, “You’ve got to love yourself the way you love your favourite song” envoke a strong reaction. Young people need such a song to sing at the top of their lungs and ‘Imperfect Stranger’ not only provides this, but also provides a much needed message about how people need to learn to embrace and love themselves, including every supposed flaw they have. There need to be more positive songs like these within the music industry.
‘Manic Pixie Dream Boy’ is a strong album – that can’t be denied. The lyrics are some of the most relatable ones that have ever been penned. However, underneath the snarky songs about reality, they’re the same; they’re digs at people who use social networking too much, about people who claim to be “punk” when they’re in fact a sell-out. Tracks like ‘San Diego’ is a perfect example of this and it seems to be nothing more than 1) a dirty dig at people and 2) it seems like Human Kitten is trying to show that they’re somehow a better human being.
After the first listen, ‘Manic Pixie Dream Boy’ becomes rather boring and repetitive. With thirteen tracks that don’t have much variation in terms of lyrical content, it appears that Human Kitten may have fallen flat on his face with this release.
JESS TAGLIANI