Some songs are time capsules. Other ones are warnings that continue to prove themselves true. The Fools by Social Gravy belongs to the latter category, initially written before a presidential election and later republished several years later due to the fact that, as the Los Angeles duo themselves says, the crooks are still around. It is an unattractive, harsh reality that is unleashed with the form of simple stinging that will not go away.
The vocals of Brad Kohn and Vee Bordukov, the so-called romantic rock’n’rollers of Social Gravy, are straightforward and confrontational, urgent, which is also as critical as the song itself. It has a grit in the delivery that is more of an earned feel than a fake one, and the political commentary is real teeth. It is a blend of grunge pop and punk rock with an energetic tune and an instant appeal of it, and as a result, you do not have to lose hooks to be point-driven.
It is rough and aggressive and does not soften the impact of the lyrics by making them more refined. The message is backed by the instrumentation in riff-savvy, melodic and muscular-balance that has made Social Gravy win the admiration of the likes of The Big Takeover who regard the band as having tapped into the Top 40 sensibilities, without being dishonest.
What is appealing about “Fools” is that it does not cushion the impact. The lyrics are bare and confrontational and they are dealing with political themes directly in clear statements that are more applicable every passing year. It is filmic in scale without ever losing its garage-band desperation.
Having an extensive discography with full-length albums and timely singles, Social Gravy keeps on pouring the raw emotion into modern rock that appears to be both cool and meaningful at the same time. Fools does not merely criticize the moment, but it builds a mirror we do not want to look in. And that’s exactly the point.
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