"I'm at the mall on a diet pill!" shouts Fred Schneider on the single and title track "Funplex" and with that ladies and gentlemen please welcome back The B52s. It's been 16 years since their last studio album and they don't disappoint on this triumphant return.
Funplex takes me back to 1989 when The B52s ruled the airwaves and video channels with "Love Shack" and "Roam." It's 11 songs about love, non-stop parties, pink helicopters and most of all FUN. Put it on and you can't help but smile. Some of the real standout songs for me include "Ultra Violet," "Deviant Ingredient" and "Juliette Of The Spirits." Each member is now in their '50s and it's a different world for them since they premiered "Rock Lobster" to an awe-struck crowd here in New York. Apparently people in the audience thought the gals were drag queens with their hairstyles and outfits. I remember dancing at my high school dances to that song and everyone lying on the floor and kicking up their legs at the height of it. The world is a way different place since those days for me and everyone. "Things are down and dirty in Washington," they sing on "Keep This Party Going" and that's an understatement, but The B52s help make all your troubles go away.
The music on Funplex sounds fresh and new and the harmonies of Kate Pierson and Cindy Wilson reminds me of old friends coming home. Welcome back indeed!