All music guide review of "Please Don't change the channel"
https://www.allmusic.com/albuhttps://www.allmusic.com/album/please-dont-change-the-channel-mw0001280631
Please Don't Change the Channel Review by Karen E. Graves
[-]A self-proclaimed "novelty pop" act hailing from New Jersey, Kingsauce writes music that has an overwhelming air of whimsical '60s pop. The upbeat, lighthearted melodies call to mind everyone from Jellyfish ("County Fair") to the Beatles ("Officer Friendly"), and while they would be perfectly palatable pop ditties on their own, a closer listen to the lyrics reveals that these seemingly sweet odes to things like the Tunnel of Love contain mischievous lines like "Maybe I'll get to second base/Maybe I'll get slapped." The music is fine and the bandmembers' ability to express their influences so effortlessly shows a command of their instruments, but the jokes tend to wear a little thin in songs like "Cardboard License Plates (Back in the Slammer Again)" that near the five-minute mark. "The Ballad of Ernie and Bert" ponders what the Muppet duo's day jobs were and tells how Mr. Hooper freaked out after doing too much of Bert's coke, while the fuzzy Monkees rock of "Willy Whistle" finds frontman Rich Chodes looking for a mute TV clown he remembers from his youth, but who no one else recalls. "Playing in a Beatles Cover Band Blues" is among the most questionably amusing tracks, with lyrics such as "Never have a problem getting jobs/Our Ringo's connected to the mob/I play the part of John, don't you know/They shoot me at the end of every show." The record also includes odes to "Livin' With the Yentas" (in a '70s Funkadelic style), Rerun and the gang ("What's Happenin'"), and The Bad News Bears ("Jackie Earl Haley"). The title track finds Chodes pleading to everyone not to change the channel, because he'd much rather watch Zoom than Seinfeld, Friends, or "gay midget bedwetters" on some talk show. The comedic lyrical slant is really the only thing separating Kingsauce from the legions of '60s throwback popsters springing up, and the band is better off for it. The group has more in common with Dr. Demento-approved "mad music and crazy comedy" than the Orange Twin scene, and, though the jokes seem forced at times, generally Kingsauce does a fine job aligning itself with the likes of Allan Sherman, Randy Newman, Barnes & Barnes, Shel Silverstein, and Radio Free Vestibule.
Review of "I love you Alice B Nelson":
“I love you Alice B Nelson” captures a raw, a lo-fi sound, signaling a return to his roots on Richie Chode’s last Kingsauce EP. The first song ” I love you ALice B Nelson” (an ode to the housekeeper from the Brady Bunch) with its piano, bass, drums minimalist approach sounds reminiscent of a lost Ben Folds Five track. The second track, “Lucky (the six million dollar cat)” has a more byrdsish,mid 60’s sound ripe with jangly guitars and prominent Hohner Pianet. The third track, “I wish I could love you (but your not Jewish)” is pure 70’s power pop/hard rock, sounding like a cross between Thin Lizzy and Foreigner, but with a Randy Newman wry sense of humour. Finally, the 4th track “Jordan” is a sweet, heart felt pop song about Richie’s love for his baby son. A fitting ending to their short but sweet career!
Indie pages review of
Kingsauce - "Cancelled" cd (Little Pocket)
\www.allmusic.com/album/cancelled-mw0001931820
Cancelled Review by Mark Deming
[-]Kingsauce describe their music as "novelty pop," and while it's clear that singer, guitarist, bassist, keyboard player, songwriter, and all-around idea guy Richie Chodes is a pretty strong hand with a melody and a hook, it's the novelty part that stands front and center on their second full-length album, Cancelled. As the title would suggest, television is Chodes primary obsession on Cancelled, as he writes tunes inspired by hours spent watching Welcome Back Kotter, All in the Family, the Three Stooges, the Little Rascals and McDonald's commercials, as well as sharing stories about buying a stomp box supposedly owned by Adam Sandler, a disappointing meeting with Morgan Freeman, and how the right mixture of breakfast cereal and anti-depressants can make you feel like Conrad Bain. Throw in other numbers about Chuck Negron's failings as a role model, losers you knew from high school, and flatulence, and you get an album that sounds like a cross between Weird Al Yankovic and Ween. But while Chodes' lyrics are more adventurous and surreal than Weird Al's, they're not as consistently funny, and Ween's brown pop vision is a good bit broader and more compelling than what Kingsauce delivers here, though Chodes writes enough good tunes here that one might wish he'd try cutting a straight-ahead pop set instead of a hit-and-miss comedy set. And while it's true fart jokes are a staple of contemporary culture, "Who Cut the Cheese" demonstrates why no one wants to hear one that goes on for over three minutes. Judging from a few listens to Cancelled, Richie Chodes needs a scholarship to the Scott McCaughey Institute of Funny Pop Songs, as Kingsauce hasn't quite mastered the art of generating laughs and hooks in equal measure.
Indie pages review of "Please dont change the channel"
Kingsauce - "Please Don't Change The Channel" cd (Happy Happy Birthday To Me)
This is the first full-length release, after a couple cassettes and singles, from a New Jersey fellow named Rich Choades (and a few cohorts). Musically, it's a mix between 70s AM radio soft rock and Scott Brookman - many of the songs are piano-based, with that jaunty quarter-note style. Lyrically, the songs are as playful, with songs about Bert & Ernie, having psoriasis, candy, teaching, television, and other unrelated topics. Sometimes it gets a bit too silly, but this isn't really the type of record that was meant to be taken very seriously anyways. Overall, it's not completely memorable or brilliant or anything, but it is good fun... MTQ=10/14 -
https://www.allmusic.com/albuhttps://www.allmusic.com/album/please-dont-change-the-channel-mw0001280631
Please Don't Change the Channel Review by Karen E. Graves
[-]A self-proclaimed "novelty pop" act hailing from New Jersey, Kingsauce writes music that has an overwhelming air of whimsical '60s pop. The upbeat, lighthearted melodies call to mind everyone from Jellyfish ("County Fair") to the Beatles ("Officer Friendly"), and while they would be perfectly palatable pop ditties on their own, a closer listen to the lyrics reveals that these seemingly sweet odes to things like the Tunnel of Love contain mischievous lines like "Maybe I'll get to second base/Maybe I'll get slapped." The music is fine and the bandmembers' ability to express their influences so effortlessly shows a command of their instruments, but the jokes tend to wear a little thin in songs like "Cardboard License Plates (Back in the Slammer Again)" that near the five-minute mark. "The Ballad of Ernie and Bert" ponders what the Muppet duo's day jobs were and tells how Mr. Hooper freaked out after doing too much of Bert's coke, while the fuzzy Monkees rock of "Willy Whistle" finds frontman Rich Chodes looking for a mute TV clown he remembers from his youth, but who no one else recalls. "Playing in a Beatles Cover Band Blues" is among the most questionably amusing tracks, with lyrics such as "Never have a problem getting jobs/Our Ringo's connected to the mob/I play the part of John, don't you know/They shoot me at the end of every show." The record also includes odes to "Livin' With the Yentas" (in a '70s Funkadelic style), Rerun and the gang ("What's Happenin'"), and The Bad News Bears ("Jackie Earl Haley"). The title track finds Chodes pleading to everyone not to change the channel, because he'd much rather watch Zoom than Seinfeld, Friends, or "gay midget bedwetters" on some talk show. The comedic lyrical slant is really the only thing separating Kingsauce from the legions of '60s throwback popsters springing up, and the band is better off for it. The group has more in common with Dr. Demento-approved "mad music and crazy comedy" than the Orange Twin scene, and, though the jokes seem forced at times, generally Kingsauce does a fine job aligning itself with the likes of Allan Sherman, Randy Newman, Barnes & Barnes, Shel Silverstein, and Radio Free Vestibule.
Review of "I love you Alice B Nelson":
“I love you Alice B Nelson” captures a raw, a lo-fi sound, signaling a return to his roots on Richie Chode’s last Kingsauce EP. The first song ” I love you ALice B Nelson” (an ode to the housekeeper from the Brady Bunch) with its piano, bass, drums minimalist approach sounds reminiscent of a lost Ben Folds Five track. The second track, “Lucky (the six million dollar cat)” has a more byrdsish,mid 60’s sound ripe with jangly guitars and prominent Hohner Pianet. The third track, “I wish I could love you (but your not Jewish)” is pure 70’s power pop/hard rock, sounding like a cross between Thin Lizzy and Foreigner, but with a Randy Newman wry sense of humour. Finally, the 4th track “Jordan” is a sweet, heart felt pop song about Richie’s love for his baby son. A fitting ending to their short but sweet career!
Indie pages review of
Kingsauce - "Cancelled" cd (Little Pocket)
\www.allmusic.com/album/cancelled-mw0001931820
Cancelled Review by Mark Deming
[-]Kingsauce describe their music as "novelty pop," and while it's clear that singer, guitarist, bassist, keyboard player, songwriter, and all-around idea guy Richie Chodes is a pretty strong hand with a melody and a hook, it's the novelty part that stands front and center on their second full-length album, Cancelled. As the title would suggest, television is Chodes primary obsession on Cancelled, as he writes tunes inspired by hours spent watching Welcome Back Kotter, All in the Family, the Three Stooges, the Little Rascals and McDonald's commercials, as well as sharing stories about buying a stomp box supposedly owned by Adam Sandler, a disappointing meeting with Morgan Freeman, and how the right mixture of breakfast cereal and anti-depressants can make you feel like Conrad Bain. Throw in other numbers about Chuck Negron's failings as a role model, losers you knew from high school, and flatulence, and you get an album that sounds like a cross between Weird Al Yankovic and Ween. But while Chodes' lyrics are more adventurous and surreal than Weird Al's, they're not as consistently funny, and Ween's brown pop vision is a good bit broader and more compelling than what Kingsauce delivers here, though Chodes writes enough good tunes here that one might wish he'd try cutting a straight-ahead pop set instead of a hit-and-miss comedy set. And while it's true fart jokes are a staple of contemporary culture, "Who Cut the Cheese" demonstrates why no one wants to hear one that goes on for over three minutes. Judging from a few listens to Cancelled, Richie Chodes needs a scholarship to the Scott McCaughey Institute of Funny Pop Songs, as Kingsauce hasn't quite mastered the art of generating laughs and hooks in equal measure.
Indie pages review of "Please dont change the channel"
Kingsauce - "Please Don't Change The Channel" cd (Happy Happy Birthday To Me)
This is the first full-length release, after a couple cassettes and singles, from a New Jersey fellow named Rich Choades (and a few cohorts). Musically, it's a mix between 70s AM radio soft rock and Scott Brookman - many of the songs are piano-based, with that jaunty quarter-note style. Lyrically, the songs are as playful, with songs about Bert & Ernie, having psoriasis, candy, teaching, television, and other unrelated topics. Sometimes it gets a bit too silly, but this isn't really the type of record that was meant to be taken very seriously anyways. Overall, it's not completely memorable or brilliant or anything, but it is good fun... MTQ=10/14 -