2008 Woodie Awards
Malebox: The band of our (wet) dreams
Dave Monroe
Issue date: 1/24/07 Section: Back Page
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Perhaps remembered more for mastery of innuendo than mastery of their musical instruments, Malebox was an unlikely success story. With titles and lyrics that blurred the line between pornography and rock music, the band managed to arouse the attention of millions of listeners worldwide. The release of their first hit single, "Let's Go Pork," marked the beginning of a decades-spanning career, as well as the beginning of a reputation for wit and subtlety. This ode to adolesent lust captured the hearts of the American public, and rose to #5 on the charts. In an extraordinary case of misunderstanding, it also soared to #1 in China, where apparently pig farming is a big deal.
Malebox quickly followed up this success with another hit single: "Victim of the Penal System." Here the band displayed their facility with double-entendre; many Americans mistakenly thought the song was about a hardened ex-con. The one-two punch of "Pork" and "Penal System" earned the band some major street-cred in the music industry. They were given a blank check to record anything their hearts desired. After entering the studio to finally create an album, they emitted their masterpiece: Sextasy.
Hailed as "an artistic achievement like no other" by the New York Times and "a creative sexplosion" by Rolling Stone magazine, Sextasy cemented Malebox's status as one of rock and roll's most tasteful and exciting acts. The album showed a more sensitive side of Malebox, with tracks such as "Two Babes are Better Than One" and "Jack's In the Box" receiving extensive radioplay.
After the success of Sextasy, the world was more or less Malebox's orifice. Er, I mean oyster. Millions of dollars exchanged hands, and the band members spent the next four years living a lifestyle of sleaze and degradation. After spending most of their money and numbing their already-negligible musical talents with mind-expanding drugs, the band decided to cut another album.
Three years of hype later, Malebox issued what was meant to be rock's next great record: Weekend at Cape Codpiece. Critically and commercially speaking, Weekend was an utter failure, and marked the beginning of the end for Malebox. Side note: Long before his political career, Bill Clinton played saxophone on the track "Aural Sensation," which appeared on this album.
Malebox quickly followed up this success with another hit single: "Victim of the Penal System." Here the band displayed their facility with double-entendre; many Americans mistakenly thought the song was about a hardened ex-con. The one-two punch of "Pork" and "Penal System" earned the band some major street-cred in the music industry. They were given a blank check to record anything their hearts desired. After entering the studio to finally create an album, they emitted their masterpiece: Sextasy.
Hailed as "an artistic achievement like no other" by the New York Times and "a creative sexplosion" by Rolling Stone magazine, Sextasy cemented Malebox's status as one of rock and roll's most tasteful and exciting acts. The album showed a more sensitive side of Malebox, with tracks such as "Two Babes are Better Than One" and "Jack's In the Box" receiving extensive radioplay.
After the success of Sextasy, the world was more or less Malebox's orifice. Er, I mean oyster. Millions of dollars exchanged hands, and the band members spent the next four years living a lifestyle of sleaze and degradation. After spending most of their money and numbing their already-negligible musical talents with mind-expanding drugs, the band decided to cut another album.
Three years of hype later, Malebox issued what was meant to be rock's next great record: Weekend at Cape Codpiece. Critically and commercially speaking, Weekend was an utter failure, and marked the beginning of the end for Malebox. Side note: Long before his political career, Bill Clinton played saxophone on the track "Aural Sensation," which appeared on this album.
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