Gino and the Goons Gino and the Goons LP
It’s been long enough since I last thought about this band that the word “goon” has taken on a cool new meaning. Just one more thing I gotta wrestle with as I give these dudes another go! Anyway, I’ve always liked the idea of GINO AND THE GOONS—a handful of Floridians approaching middle-age (probably full-blown at this point!), who seemingly didn’t have a history playing music, saying “fuck it” and forming a budget rock band at a time when most punks wanted nothing to do with that sound. Real laudable shit! Unfortunately, that admiration did little in the way of helping me enjoy their music. I never hated it or anything, but their songs just never did it for me. So, I went into this release, their sixth(!) LP, with pretty low expectations. Now, I’m not sure if it’s because my expectations were so low, because I’ve mellowed a little in the ten-ish years since I last listened to them, or because they’ve grown as songwriters—probably some combination of all three—but I kinda dug this. The nine tracks that make up the record mix RAMONES-y dum-dum punk, glam, and druggy garage punk (think fellow Sunshine Staters JACUZZI BOYS). Am I ready to erect a GOON cave for some prolonged GOON seshes? I am not. But this record was OK enough to get the job done.