Say it ain’t so! Yet another young, sweaty rock and roll act, full of energy and promise calls it a day. But rather than lament for the demise of dense barroom rock, listeners should pull a little carpe diem here. You Should Have Killed Us When You Had The Chance, the tongue in cheek final record from Parkas offers us all a chance to get acquainted with a band many missed the boat on.
Spontaneous and at times punishing in a pleasant sort of way, one can’t help but wonder why a band on top of their proverbial game would throw in the towel after a record as promising as You Should Have Killed Us When You Had The Chance. But that little bit of mystery that remains present in rock and roll should be cherised, not torn to shreds. The buoyancy of “Muscle Memory” insists that Parkas are leaving us with heavy hearts, not full of scorn. In fact, that buoyancy keeps You Should Have Killed Us When You Had The Chance charging along with an omnipotent urgency. The mass sing-a-long of “The Gang’s All Gone” calls for fresh beginnings on an open road with a snarling pace.
The sheer pace of the entire barroom stomp and brawl that You Should Have Killed Us When You Had The Chance might be mistaken for a cranky goodbye, maybe even a muted “Fuck off.” But the subtle, homely and elegant touches on the haunting “Lie To Me,” with a repeated chorus of “I can’t lie to you anymore” means that closure may have finally been attained by Parkas on their last release. Too bad the legions of new fans this record will bring in won’t ever attain that same kind of closure, ever.
By Joshua Kloke
[Rating: 4/5]
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