Soul Caddy

Soul Caddy

Cherry Poppin' Daddies have been tagged as a retro act, and that's selling the band short. Sure, the boys found their opening into the mainstream via the lounge lizard fad of the mid-'90s, but the band has found an answer to the age-old question "So what else do you do?" The answer is <I>Soul Caddy</I>, the Eugene, Oregon-based octet's follow-up to its breakthrough <I>Zoot Suit Riot</I> and a much more diverse release at that. The opening cut, "Diamond Light Boogie," keeps swing on the brain as the band takes a foray into glam-rock territory. "Grand Mal" is a nice exercise in acoustic folk rock with enough heart to make it both fresh and refreshing. "My Mistake" mixes their punchy horns with skittery percussion, giving the track a mad rush of flavor. And, yes, the band still knows how to swing like Prima and jive like Armstrong.<I>--Jason Josephes</I>