Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion

Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion
Studio album by
Fight Like Apes
ReleasedRepublic of Ireland 26 September 2008
United Kingdom 26 January 2009
Japan 22 April 2009
Recorded2008
GenreAlternative rock,[1] karate rock,[2][3] punk rock[4]
Length38:35
LabelModel Citizen Records
Japan Sony Music Entertainment Japan[5]
ProducerJohn Goodmanson
Fight Like Apes chronology
David Carradine is a Bounty Hunter Whos Robotic Arm Hates Your Crotch
(2007) 		Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion
(2008) 		The Body of Christ and the Legs of Tina Turner
(2010)
Singles from Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Gold Medallion
  1. "Something Global"
    Released: 2008
  2. "Lend Me Your Face"
    Released: 2008
  3. "Jake Summers"
    Released: 19 September 2008
  4. "Tie Me Up with Jackets"
    Released: 2009

Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion is the debut studio album of Fight Like Apes. It was released in Ireland on 26 September 2008, the UK on 26 January 2009 and Japan in April 2009.

The album charted in the top ten of the Irish Albums Chart upon its release, at #9. It was nominated in the Best Irish Album category at the 2009 Meteor Awards, as well as for the Choice Music Prize in the same year. Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion was named 31st best album of the decade by Phantom FM at the end of 2009.[6]

Recording

The band spent a month in Seattle, Washington, in early 2008, recording tracks for the album, produced by John Goodmanson.[7][8][9] The album title was inspired by a 1980s Mr. T cartoon.[10] The episode was called “Mystery of the Golden Medallions” and followed Mr T as he coached an Olympic gymnastics youth team.[10]

The album was released on 26 September 2008 on Model Citizen Records,[11][12][13] selling continually well in Ireland and the UK.[14] It was preceded by the release of the single "Something Global" on 11 July 2008.[7] Fight Like Apes played a sold-out launch show at Whelan's in Dublin,[13] which was broadcast live on Phantom FM on the day of release.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[15]
AltSounds(80%)[16]
BBC(not rated)[17]
CLUAS(not rated)[18]
entertainment.ie[19]
RTÉ[20]
Sputnikmusic[21]
Sunday Tribune[22]

The Irish Times described the album as an "astonishing debut that encompasses melancholy and whimsy (both lyrically and musically).[23] The Irish Independent, on the other hand, "strongly urge[d] all not to waste their money" on "the woeful debut" of a band with "lots of blogger and media friends, all aurally challenged".[24] These blogger friends responded to the criticism of the band but the band's frontwoman, MayKay, remains unbothered by criticism as long as the album is simply being reviewed.[9] RTÉ also gave the album a lukewarm response.[25] Neil Dunphy, writing in the Sunday Tribune, said producer John Goodmanson had "managed to capture Fight Like Apes' red hot live energy on record".[26]

In the UK press NME awarded the album 7/10 and described it as "Relentlessly pilfering the brightest parts of post-hardcore synthery, cartoon punk and sugar-rush twee, these totally hinge-free magpies have built a nest from shards of Enter Shikari, Test Icicles and Le Tigre and then thrashed the shiny fuck out of it." The album also received 8/10 in Rocksound and "4 flies" in The Fly.

In October 2008, Sony Music Entertainment Japan signed the band for the Asian release of Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion.[27] It was released in Japan in April 2009.[9]

It was released in the UK on 26 January 2009.[28][29]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Fight Like Apes

No.TitleLength
1."Something Global"3:50
2."Jake Summers"3:54
3."Tie Me Up with Jackets"2:35
4."Digifucker"3:25
5."Lend Me Your Face"1:54
6."Battlestations"3:53
7."Do You Karate?"2:31
8."Megameanie"0:08
9."I'm Beginning to Think You Prefer Beverly Hills 90210 to Me"3:23
10."Lumpy Dough"3:20
11."Recyclable Ass"2:30
12."Snore Bore Whore"4:37
Total length:38:35
UK (bonus tracks)
No.TitleLength
13."Lightsabre Cocksucking Blues"2:01
14."Knucklehead"1:57
15."Telephone The Real Ham Jackson"6:04
16."Canhead"2:10
17."This Is Like The Time Jody Didn't Know What Cunnilingus Was"1:06
Total length:49:27

Personnel

  • MayKay - Synth, vocals
  • Pockets - Synth, vocals
  • Tom - Bass
  • Adrian - Drums
  • John Goodmanson - Production
  • Zoran Orlic - Photography

Chart performance

Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion reached the top five of the Irish Albums Chart, meaning the band became the first alternative act from Ireland to achieve this for several years.[1]

Chart Peak
position
Irish Albums Chart 5

Awards

Choice Music Prize

Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion was nominated for the Choice Music Prize in January 2009.[9][24][30][31] The award was won by Jape for the album Ritual on 4 March 2009.[32][33][34][35][36][37][38]

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2009 Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion Irish Album of the Year 2008 Nominated

Meteor Music Awards

Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion was nominated at the Meteor Music Awards in 2009, in the category of Best Irish Album.[9][30][31][39][40][41]

Year Nominee / work Award Result
2009 Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion Best Irish Album Nominated

References

  1. ^ a b "Electric Avenue 2nd Birthday Celebrations". The Munster Express. 31 October 2009. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  2. ^ "No monkey business with Fight Like Apes". Limerick Independent. 31 October 2007. Archived from the original on 2 December 2008. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  3. ^ "Manic 'Easter' Monday". The Munster Express. 19 March 2008. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  4. ^ "OV6 Week 6". Other Voices. 19 March 2008. Archived from the original on 26 March 2008. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  5. ^ "Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion (Asia Edition)". Sony Music Entertainment Japan. 22 April 2009. Retrieved 8 March 2012.
  6. ^ "Phantom's fab 50". The Irish Times. 30 October 2009. Retrieved 30 October 2009. The highest placed Irish album was Fight Like Apes' 2008 debut, which came in at number 31. The full list can be seen at www.phantom.ie.
  7. ^ a b "Fight Like Apes Release Date". Sputnikmusic. 26 May 2008. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  8. ^ "A review of 'Fight Like Apes & The Mystery of the Golden Medallion'". CLUAS. 20 October 2008. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  9. ^ a b c d e "fighting talk". The Sunday Business Post. 2 February 2009. Archived from the original on 28 March 2010. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  10. ^ a b "Fight Like Apes for Mr T treasure". Birmingham Mail. 21 November 2008. Archived from the original on 13 March 2012. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  11. ^ "Fight Like Apes announce album details, Dublin gig and free download". Hot Press. 5 August 2008. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  12. ^ "Fight Like Apes announced gig and album details". Phantom FM. 5 August 2008. Archived from the original on 6 October 2008. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  13. ^ a b "For The Love Of..." RTÉ. 5 August 2008. Retrieved 8 June 2009.[permanent dead link‍]
  14. ^ "Fight Like Apes". The Munster Express. 5 June 2009. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  15. ^ Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion at AllMusic
  16. ^ "Altsounds.com Reviews | Fight Like Apes - Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion [Album]". hangout.altsounds.com. Archived from the original on 31 December 2009. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  17. ^ "BBC - Music - Review of Fight Like Apes - Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion".
  18. ^ "CLUAS | Album reviews". Archived from the original on 18 May 2016.
  19. ^ "Fight Like Apes - and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion". 25 September 2008.
  20. ^ "RT?.ie Entertainment: Fight Like Apes - Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion". RTÉ.ie. Archived from the original on 25 December 2008. Retrieved 13 June 2009.
  21. ^ "Fight Like Apes - ...And The Mystery Of The Golden Medallion (album review ) | Sputnikmusic". www.sputnikmusic.com.
  22. ^ "Sunday Tribune". [permanent dead link‍]
  23. ^ "The 50 best Irish music acts right now". The Irish Times. 3 April 2009. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  24. ^ a b "Loaded: 16 January 2009". Irish Independent. 16 January 2009. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  25. ^ "Fight Like Apes - Fight Like Apes and the Mystery of the Golden Medallion". RTÉ. 10 October 2008. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  26. ^ "Rock and Pop". Sunday Tribune. 28 September 2008. Retrieved 5 August 2009.[permanent dead link‍]
  27. ^ "Fight Like Apes On Prodigy Tour". Sputnikmusic. 28 October 2008. Archived from the original on 2 November 2012. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  28. ^ "Performed with the personality with which it is imbued". BBC. 22 January 2009. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  29. ^ "The biggest bands of 2009". Sunday Herald. Retrieved 8 June 2009.[permanent dead link‍]
  30. ^ a b "Kings and Killers lead the Meteors way". The Irish Times. 29 January 2009. Retrieved 28 January 2009.
  31. ^ a b "Doherty, Elbow and Cave for Oxegen". The Irish Times. 13 February 2009. Archived from the original on 8 October 2012. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  32. ^ "UPDATED: Jape wins 2009 Choice Music Price". Hot Press. 5 March 2009. Retrieved 5 March 2009.
  33. ^ "Jape album wins Choice Music Prize". RTÉ. 5 March 2009. Retrieved 5 March 2009.
  34. ^ "Dublin musician Jape wins Choice Music Prize". Irish Examiner. 5 March 2009. Archived from the original on 6 March 2009. Retrieved 5 March 2009.
  35. ^ "Dublin musician Jape wins Choice Music Prize". Irish Independent. 5 March 2009. Archived from the original on 3 August 2012. Retrieved 5 March 2009.
  36. ^ "Jolly Jape admits he's surprised to scoop Choice gong". Irish Independent. 5 March 2009. Retrieved 5 March 2009.
  37. ^ "Dublin band Jape wins overall prize at Choice Music awards". The Irish Times. 5 March 2009. Retrieved 5 March 2009.
  38. ^ "Jape the surprise choice as Ritual takes the plaudits". The Irish Times. 5 March 2009. Retrieved 5 March 2009.
  39. ^ "Meteor Awards 2009 - Presenter & Nominees Revealed". Hot Press. 28 January 2009. Retrieved 28 January 2009.
  40. ^ "Meteor Music Awards folks wake up and shut down website". The Irish Times. 27 January 2009. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
  41. ^ "Meteor Music Awards nominees revealed". RTÉ. 29 January 2009. Retrieved 28 January 2009.