Scheduled to perform Saturday at the Michigan Pride Festival, Bitch and Animal are something of an oddity. Two women with more balls than most male artists, they seem to hold nothing too sacred. From name-checking Eminem in the rap song "Secret Candy" to questioning the effects of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on "WTC," the duo shows a great deal of intellect and an overwhelming sense of humor.
Their latest release, "Sour Juice and Rhyme" - released on Ani DiFranco's Righteous Babe Records - is a grab-bag of music, poetry and beats.
Some come off with a great deal of potency and humor and others fall flat, but the overall charm of the duo remains triumphant until the end.
But the grab-bag is brimmed. They rap "Back in the day people used to get dressed up to play croquet" over a simplistic beat on "Croquet."
They throw in a bit of beatnik on with the aid of little more than djembe and udu drums and some potent words on "Dog Grab Dog," and get all chain-gang with "Don't Do Crystal."
"Betty Ford" sounds like the a whiskey-soaked Dixie Chicks, and the song is just as hilarious as the image of the country-pop stars checking into the infamous clinic.
The album's standout track, "Feminist Housewives," is worth the price of the CD. With echoes of "Alice's Restaurant," the song tells the tale of two young mothers, the undue influence of feminist and Oprah-mainstay Gloria Steineim, a road trip, some discovery and a whole lot of ukulele.
It's absurdly hilarious to hear the chorus "We are wannabe feminist housewives" after lines like "Now I'm cooking the veggies and valuing myself." Even Bitch and Animal can't contain their laughter on the track.
Sure, it gets cumbersome and artsy with poetic tracks like "Search Light" and "You Left Out," and the vocals sometimes border on obnoxious, but that's beside the point.
Bitch and Animal, with all their insight, humor and gall, are a force to reckoned with.
Bitch and Animal will be performing 5 p.m. Saturday on the Miller Festival stage in Lansing's Riverfront Park.
Flow: **1/2
Lyrics: ****
Music: ***1/2
Replay Value: ***
