no denying that things are bad. There is death all around us, and ours will come soon enough. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t reasons to be joyous.
The string quartet metaphor stretches only as far as the album’s lyrics will take it. The band’s music is as far from a stately waltz as one can get. Their punk-tinged folk has the ramshackle feel of small-town mechanics partying in the woods. The acoustic guitar barrels through the songs like a freight train. The lead singer is more concerned with expressing himself than sounding perfect, making each song perfect for a drunken sing-along.
The Jihad touch on some rough topics on People Who Can Eat People..., yet the listener is left feeling good about life after its half hour of songs. Death, drug abuse, and mental illness come up, but the band always comes back to remind us that it’s good to be alive. In their song “Rejoice,” they sum up the album with the lyrics “Rejoice despite the fact this world will tear you to shreds/ Rejoice because you’re doing your best.”
