Crocodiles: Summer of Hate

I bet Crocodiles wish their buddies No Age never mentioned their name in a Stereogum piece about the best songs of 2008. The drone-punk two-piece christened the Crocodiles song “Neon Jesus” as their personal fave and instantly, albeit temporarily, catapulted the group into this exalted status of the next band to watch. And all this happened before the release of their debut, Summer of Hate, in April when the backlash machine was already in full-swing.

The usual suspects have lambasted the band for sounding like Jesus and Mary Chain, but even the New York Times weighed in wondering whether the trajectory of the band’s career might dissolve like the feedback loops on the album’s track “Flash of Light”.

So where does this leave Crocodiles, a band who wasn’t even given a chance due to this new phenomenon of constantly searching for something both ‘cool’ and ‘new’. In the same way that Craigslist killer can’t get a fair trail, Crocodiles can’t possibly be judged only on their merits. No matter that the album reels you in with its fuzzy hooks, the die has already been cast for them. Maybe the guys can recast themselves as the Marmosets, turn their distortion down a bit, and play music closely resembling the Troggs. This will please everyone in the insulated bubble of the critic/blog world, giving the lads another shot at stardom. Who knows, the Marmosets could be huge in 2012.