Emperor Penguin’s album “Gentlemen Thieves” is available from BandCamp.

I played “What’s The Worst That Could Happen” on the show recently, maybe the 3rd or 4th time I’ve done so, because let’s not mince words…it’s simply a perfect song.

My friends know I largely ignore and dismiss “rankings”…I never do them…because it’s one person’s opinion, and I am probably the most opinionated person you’ll EVER meet, ESPECIALLY when it comes to MUSIC. I continue to learn a LOT from my friends and collegues, all very enlightening stuff, but I ultimately play the Peter Gabriel card…”I know what I like, and I like what I know.”

THAT SAID, according to BandCamp, this song was “Named #13 best song of the year by Powerpop News.”

And there ARE people who are NOT like me, who base listening decisions on lists and rankings, so I don’t dismiss it. It’s valid. It would never come from me in that form, so here is my Emperor Penguin testimonial that IS something I can say with commitment and integrity.

I first crossed paths with Emperor Penguin when Ray Gianchetti from Kool Kat Music emailed me about their 2020 album “Soak Up The Gravy.” I liked what I heard, and I’ve played them on my show many times since then.

They’ve had 4 LPs and 3 albums after “Gravy.”

I realized a few things today when my Sunday Earworm became “What’s The Worst That Could Happen?”

1). I think we sometimes over-use the word “event” to describe new releases, but with this band, every new release IS actually an EVENT.

2). The ideal way for a band to exist is to have a common shared vision and respect among the members, but this band has a whole other layer that’s a key ingredient to their greatness. The band members all have individual tastes, preferences, strengths…and they chide each other about this in a very good-humored and gentle way…but this means your mind can be blown multiple times for MULTIPLE REASONS, all on one album. There’s nothing wrong with an artist picking a lane and sticking in it. Plenty of them do. But Emperor Penguin gets out on the highway and starts doing donuts at high speed across the lanes and somehow, probably due to talent and tenure, they make it all work. I think the term commonly applied to people who have that ability is “GENIUS.”

3). You’ll buy an album like “Gentlemen Thieves,” you’ll play it, you’ll like it, and then you’ll hear 1000 other artists. Then, one day, you’ll get one of the songs stuck in your head…as I did…and you’ll pull out the album and it’s like you’re hearing it for the first time. If these gentlemen had desired a chosen career other than music, they would have all been perfectly qualified to open up an upscale bake shop, because NONE OF THEIR MUSIC GROWS STALE. I’m not kidding, it perpetually remains as fresh as the day they recorded it, and they pull this off ALBUM AFTER ALBUM.

I don’t know if there is an actual scientific term like “Penguin Fever,” because I assume you’d contract it if an infected penguin bit you, and I’ve never seen them bite anyone. I’ve seen them take a fish from a zookeeper, but they don’t seem to be biting the hand that feeds them. But what I will tell you is that if you DO NOT HAVE “Penguin Fever,” you are REALLY MISSING OUT. So head on over to Bandcamp RIGHT NOW, because really…what’s the worst that could happen?