House of Fatty Koo

Album Review

They may be the subjects of a BET television series, but Fatty Koo are intent on not being labeled a prefab band. With so many twists, turns, and new ideas — at least by radio-friendly pop standards — House of Fatty Koo supports their argument. Often the Koo bite off more than they can chew, something a Svengali would never let them do. The ridiculous "H.O.F.K." cops "Bohemian Rhapsody"'s attitude, adds munchkin voices, and then gives way to a summer love ballad. It's clumsy — silly even — but if the hyper, gimmicky chorus of "Bounce" has already persuaded you, the over the top album will satisfy your hunger for glittering camp. The club-worthy "Tight" will have your "body goin through convulsions like you on crack" while "G'on Girl" has that "gushy stuff that you want." If they were in their thirties, jaded, and delivering these lines with any sort of maturity, the album would be a disaster. But these kids from fame are filled with talent and youthful exuberance. The album catches it in an unbridled manner, letting them borrow shamelessly from R. Kelly, Usher, and everything else big and 2005. They put it all through the giggling Koo blender and give it back to the listener with bubbly enthusiasm. It's the faceless ballads that spoil the fun, but there are very few of them and their effectiveness goes up a bit if you're still dealing with crushes and locker combinations. No interludes or skits tie the album to the show, suggesting Fatty Koo see their music as the real deal, not their work in reality television. Good for them, because the youthful flash of their debut packs a television season's worth of excitement into a much tighter package.