Suzanne E. Brown | Cumming, GA United States | 05/13/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"While not bieng thier best album, Oddities is still a pretty solid listen.Circle Jerks final album is also thier most diverse. Most of the songs on here steer away from thier usual hardcore punk format, and experimental tunes such as " Shining through the door" and "Sinking Ship" highlight this album.Most of the songs on this album sound fimiliar to the old school rock of the stooges. This isnt a bad thing, its just different that what you would expect from the circle jerks.One song from this album: "I wanna Destroy you" became pretty infamous, for having pop singer Debbie Gibson on back up vocals. Teenage Electric is also one of the best Circle Jerks songs I've ever heard.But if you have never heard them before, I suggest either picking up Group Sex or VI, get this after you've heard the band before. The biggest problem I have with this album is that it was released on a major label. It's not that I think the Circle Jerks sold out, because they didnt, but the album booklet is very annoying to me.The insides claim "Greg Heston appears cortousey of Geffen records" "Zander Scholls appears courtesy of Interscope records"I dont know why these people have to be appearing on this record like that: they are members of the band after all. It seems to me this is a unnessacary legality imposed by the majorsAlso, the lyric sheet is jumbled up into one giant paragraph, and all the cuss words are censored out. >_"
Circle Jerks go mainstream?!
Joseph P. Ulibas | Sacramento, CA, USA | 06/23/2005
(4 out of 5 stars)
"The Circle Jerks return to the public eye during the mid-90's with a mainstream album release. I don't know how Keith Morris and Greg Hetson managed to get a record deal with a big music company (but they did). The end results? A nice tight punk-pop album filled with three minute songs and a lot of noise and attitude.
What a return for one of L.A.'s seminal punk bands. Soon after this album was released, they filmed a video that recieved airplay on MTV. I Wanna Destroy You (a Robin Hitchcock song) was recorded with Debbie Gibson(?) and
one of the ladies from L7. Not a classic by any means, just an enjoyable disc filled with a lot of punk driven pop songs.
Viva Circle Jerks!"
Deborah Gibson Shows Her Chops and Shows the Boys She Rocks!
Joseph P. Ulibas | 12/04/1998
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Veteran Punk Rockers, the Circle Jerks, teams up with the veteran pop artist, Deborah Gibson, on the hilariously fun thrasher _I Wanna Destroy You_. This is a fine example of aggressive punk rock meets carefree pop, and the results are refreshing. Deborah's counter-melody givees this Circle Jerk song irony, as it breaks musical boundaries and traditional images of both artists."
Circle Jerks - Oddities, Abnormalities, & Curiosities
I. Cohen | brooklyn, ny United States | 12/23/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I know what your thinking, a Circle Jerks album from 1995, it must suck. This was the first Circle Jerks album i got. However i didn't give it a fair listen until after i got Group Sex.(their first one) I missed out and you gotta get this now so you dont. First, you dont need to be familar with the jerks to like this; just a rock fan. so you can start your collection with this one. This one is a bit more commerical than their others, but it has some of their best songs ever written. opening with the wobbly guitar of "teenage electric" you know this album is gonna kick [...]. it must have broke the hearts of the band that the album was not a hit because the single "i wanna destroy you" is really catchy and "shinning through the door is probably the best circle jerks song ever written. "sinking ship" would have fit well on golden shower of hits (their third)and "brick" returns to the suject matter of the earlier stuff with a bit of a lighter sound. the solo on "fable" is one of the best in punk history. keith sounds good on this record and their are no filters like on "wild in the streets." The band is tight, Greg Hetson (also of Bad Religion) plays tasteful and melodic so does Zander Schloss. very accessible and only one bad song "22" and even that you wont skip."
Remember the good old days?
Sean Reynolds | Oakland, California | 05/02/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"When I was in high school, my friend Jeff Wong, who was incredibly not punk, made a tape for me, and said I'd like it. That tape was Oddities. I lost it about 2 years later, and that was 3 years ago. I really miss this CD. I can't find it in any store, then WHAM! (no, not the 80's group) it hits me! AMAZON!, and here it is. I've missed it."