With a hint of 6ix Toys, a dash of Red Hot Chili Peppers and plenty of good humour Mean Poppa Lean were the discovery of the weekend. The quartet (sextet if you count their trumpet and sax [er, trombone? - C-Dogg] duo the Horny Brassholes) already have a polished their live show: call and response tracks, getting the crowd to go down low and “a little more bacon, a little more sausage,” quips from the singer trying to get the drummer to hit the high hats more, which added a tongue-in-cheek twist to the set. There were parts of Smoove and Jacko during ‘How Times How Hot’, Flea basslines lurking underneath ‘The Pash’ and with great showmanship to boot, MPL need to be caught to believed.
tiscali.co.uk, Great Escape review
In the Prince Albert the rammed audience are treated to the funk hilarity of Mean Poppa Lean. Christian Jennings Barnes’ soulful vocals at times sound like Michael Jackson, while ‘Ginger Assassin’ C-Dogg comedy gurns his way through guitar solos and asks the crowd if they have ever seen a musical instrument played with a live animal. He then proceeds to strum his with a ‘Shark Stimulation’ sign from the wall. During final song ‘Hot Times How Hot’ the crowd answer the call and response chorus and drummer Grills plays a drum solo as Jennings Barnes conducts, saying, “Give me some bacon! Now give me some sausage! And give me some eggs!” 8/10
VirtualFestivals.com, Festival Reviews (The Great Escape)
It was Mean Poppa Lean in the Prince Albert, however, who were by far the most entertaining gig of the evening. Their Red Hot Chili Peppers sounding funk drew a big crowd in the small pub as the lead singer split the crowd in two for a good old ‘which side is louder’ sing off.
Backed by a trumpet and saxophone [it's a fucking TROMBONE!! - C-Dogg] duo, named the Horny Brassholes, the band played a ten minute version of ‘Hot Times How Hot’ during which the guitarist played his guitar with the shark sign from the pub’s wall.
Tiscali.co.uk, Festival Reviews (The Great Escape)
"Like the Chili Peppers with Faith No More's Mike Patton on vocals, with maybe some Foals and some Friendly Fires thrown in for more contemporary measure, this is clearly a band on the cusp of national arena adoration."
Brighton Source Magazine.
"Eccentric Brighton Funk lunatics, Mean Poppa Lean, are without a doubt the most recognisable band in performance due to their refusal to adhere to any currently known school of thought when it comes to stage wear. These boys are all genius and are heading for greatness"
You Got Papped Mag.
"They are the best live band I have laid my eyes on in years, and will be playing every festival in the UK this year, I will make sure of that!"
Mark Chadwick - The Levellers.
"Mean Poppa Lean raise a big fat finger in
the air to all the pretentious, self-indulgent, shoe-gazing, retro
bands and a reminder that it really is okay to put on music and freak
out without a care in the world as to what it all means!"
Southscene Magazine.
"Mean Poppa Lean clearly revel in their own funkiness, and when they proclaim ‘We Eat Funk For Breakfast’ I for one am not going to argue with them. If you’re after some mindless, pelvis-thrusting, crotch-grabbing, funky action, then this is your band!"
IsThisMusic.com.
"Mean Poppa Lean are a band to whom the word 'subtlety' means nothing. They deliver the kind of fun you once had in the playground. Some of these tracks (Smash & Grab E.P) are undeniably funny, the band parodying the genre and themselves throughout. They have the tongue in cheek humour of adolescent schoolboys and whilst this might all sound ridiculous and cliched there is something unavoidably infectious about this band."
Now Then Magazine (Sheffield).
"Smash & Grab" 5-track E.P is available now.
Contact MPL:
Live Bookings - Tom Barnard (tom@insanitygroup.com)
meanpoppalean@hotmail.com
www.myspace.com/meanpoppalean
Yes, we could get you gigs in the 2 local rock bars - the younguns would love you but we'd probably have church bells at noon for a week after for all the oldies that couldn't handle it.
Hi, through JUNE AND JULY we are slashing our day time rehearsal prices. Between 10am and 5pm all our rooms are either £6 or £7 per hour including weekends. Making us one of the cheapest in SUSSEX. Plus If you buy 3 hours we will even throw in a 4th totally FREE. YES TOTALLY FREE.
OUR RECORDING RATES ARE STILL JUST AS AFFORDABLE TOO, FULL DAYS FROM £200 ALL IN.
So come and rehearse and record in one of the best equipped music complex's in the South.
I will be at the front when you guys play... I love the Mean Poppa Lean song =) There shall be pulling some serious shapes haha... What day and time you playing?? You going to be camping?! xx
AKL - Brightons premiere open mic night sponsored by
www.discountpahire.co.uk, invites you to an evenings entertainment @
the quadrant this and every THURSDAY 8pm !!!!FREE ENTRY!!!!
Beautiful venue, perfect setting, waiter service, awesome real
ales, professional pa system, !free gift for performers!, all this and
so much more
Fancy performing? you can use AKL to audition for showcase events and paid gigs at the bar!!!!