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It’s been a turbulent time for Norman Cook over the past four years – he’s had the highs of packing out Brighton Beach for two years in a row, but also the constant anguish of marriage trouble. Before this, in 2000, he released a dismal third album, ‘Halfway Between the Gutter and the Stars’ - a bland affair that failed to dent the charts and was rightfully panned by critics. The question is, could Fatboy utilise and rise above these experiences to produce a brilliant work in the face of adversity? Unfortunately the answer is no.
The majority of Palookaville is Fatboy Slim by numbers. It’s the sound of a man drawing on the same formulas and simply playing it safe. Opener ‘Don’t Let the Man Get You Down’ perfectly illustrates this – it revolves around a heavily over-used, slightly quirky sample that’s melded together with a trademark buoyant tune. True, it’s innocuous enough, yet it fails to inspire any positive response. Elsewhere, on ‘Put It Back Together’ Damon Albarn’s vocals are tired and disaffected – it makes you want to say “don’t worry Damon the feeling is mutual”. Cook seems to have abandoned the idea of creating captivating tunes – unsurprisingly, something his best album, ‘You’ve Come a Long Way Baby’, had in abundance. Tracks like ‘Push and Shove’ and ‘The Journey’ are quite pleasant and soothing, however, there’s no substance to them, they just stutter along and are instantly forgettable.
Fortunately there is some respite from the tedium. Cook is clearly at his strongest when he’s being playful, such as on ‘Mi Bebe Masoquista’, which fuses a tech-edged sample with country guitars and a cheeky bass line. Similarly, the chaotic ‘Jin Go La Ba’ juxtaposes Latino chants with manic beats and completely (and thankfully) messes with your head. Ultimately, however, these rare high-points are overshadowed by the rest of the album which is just boring.
