Bad Cop/Bad Cop

Boss Lady [7-inch] (2014)

Ricky Frankel

The ladies of Bad Cop/Bad Cop have recorded the Boss Lady EP, their debut release on Fat Wreck Chords. This four-track pop-punk EP preaches the messages of independence, standing up for one's self, kicking ass and not taking any prisoners. For instance, in the bridge of the song "My Life" the lyrics say: "Shove your labels/We'll flip your tables/And we won't apologize for causing a scene!" Clearly, this band makes it their mission to break down any kind of stereotypes within the punk scene. The Boss Lady EP is filled with really interesting vocal parts. Lead vocalists (and guitarists) Stacey Dee and Jennie Cotterill have no issues being able to belt out the lyrics with a lot of attitude, while bassist Linh Le gracefully backs them up. When all three of them can harmonize at the same time it adds a whole new dimension to their sound. You can tell that Bad Cop/Bad Cop's vocals as a whole are done as a team effort- a well-oiled machine. No one is trying to out-sing the other. This is especially apparent on the song "Rodeo," which of the four songs on this EP has the best melody and also a very interesting guitar interlude. The guitars on this EP are hard-hitting and rockin.' Each song has fast-paced main riffs and if you listen carefully you can hear some cool bass fills that are not readily apparent at first, but after a second or third listen you can hear just how intricate they are.

Signing Bad Cop/Bad Cop was a good decision because the band definitely has that famous "Fat Wreck sound." It's great to listen to some female musicians that just let their music speak for itself. There's certainly no over-sexualization like (insert any main stream pop diva here) or gimmicks like a stupid foam finger or pretending to be country music's innocent little princess. These women want you take their music at face value and that's it. There needs to be more Bad Cop/Bad Cop kind of bands in the scene.