THE PRESS HAVE BEEN KIND TO US. NO, REALLY, WE HAVEN'T EVEN HAD TO CENSOR THEM YET!
"Uptown attempted to get a comment from Sam Katz about (the Consumer Goods song, and the final words are yours, sam katz) but was told that the mayor is taking some holidays." -Marlo Campbell, Uptown Magazine, 2007.
"Pop Goes the Pigdog! was so extremely good that it almost defies description." -Grant Hamilton, Brandon Sun, 2007.
"Ongemeen krachtige muziek. (Uncommonly powerful music.)" -Wim Boluijt, Hanx.net, Dutch Music Zine, 2006.
"This is a decidedly intelligent leftist, anti-imperialist record... the welling epic arrangements of many of these tunes match the subject matter blow-for-blow, making this the most impressive debut by a Winnipeg act for many years." -John Kendle, Uptown Magazine, 2006.
"Musically, it's that gentle strain of country, folk and chamber pop that our great nation bangs out by the boatload... but listen close, because the lyrics are bare-knuckled black comedy bordering on surrealism, diabolically sharp and intricate left-wing zingers at the expense of, well, guess who?" -Rupert Bottenburg, Montreal Mirror, 2007.
"A brand new, undeniably infectious, and activist pop unit." -Grant Lawrence, CBC Radio Three, 2006.
"Happy Bidet exhibits (Shipley's) ever-evolving approach to composition, experimenting with sound samples and unconventional song structures over an accessible sound. Along with a poetic assault on U.S. obsession with capital gain and global domination, the Consumer goods are able to answer the late Frank Zappa's existential question, 'does humour belong in music?'" -Nick MacMahon, The Manitoban, 2007.
"I found this band while researching a paper on the Taiping Rebellion. I can't believe I would ever say it, but this CD actually made it enjoyable to learn something." -anonymous blogger, 2006.
"Shipley zingt in vijftien prachtige liedjes met prachtige stem en bijgestaan door een prachtige band, over de bommen in London, over Adam Smith, de grondlegger van het liberalisme, over Irak en over nog veel meer. Hoewel ook de eigen vertwijfeling wel aan bod komt, is dit Pop Goes The Pigdog toch meer extern gericht dan intern. (Shipley sings in fifteen beautiful songs with a beautiful voice and assisted through a beautiful band, over the bombs in London, over Adam Smith, the founder of the liberalism, over Iraq and over yet much more. Although the despair comes through clearly, Pop Goes The Pigdog directs that despair into changing others' minds.)" -Wim Boluijt, Hanx.net, Dutch Music Zine, 2006.
"This disc is filled with wonderfully written songs and the band is able to get their point across without becoming arrogant or preachy... their lyrics demand attention and Shipley's voice, which so easily wavers between despair and hopefulness, is perfect to bring that attention." -Ashley J. Perna, The Nomad (Kingston), 2006.
"Tyler Shipley and his band tackle heady topics of social justice, American politics, revolution and a woman's right to choose on their triumphant sophomore effort, which should rank as one of 2007's best local releases." -Rob Williams, Winnipeg Free Press, 2007.
"The Consumer Goods are not famous and that's criminal... Shipley and his bandmates pour forth gem after gem of pristine indie-pop goodness." -Grant Hamilton, Brandon Sun, 2006.
"Hella sweet indie pop." -Grant Lawrence, CBC Radio Three, 2006.
"It seems like there is less and less room for activism in popular music nowadays, which makes Winnipeg's Consumer Goods such an interesting little act... while it's cover art would tend to make one think the listener should be getting prepared for a noisy, raucous blast of politico-punk, the album is instead chalk-full of rootsy guitars, sweet pedal steel and some infectious little leftist ditties." -Sean Palmerston, The View (Hamilton), 2007.
"The Consumer Goods have crafted an alt-pop throwdown that's as challanging socially as it is sonically." -David Schmeical, Winnipeg Sun, 2006.
"I enjoyed this album a lot. At first I was annoyed to hear direct references in the lyrics to the politics... however, I soon was taken by this approach, particularly the song dealing with Colin Powell." -anonymous OiNK bittorrent user, 2007.
"Tyler Shipley proved himself a clever, anti-establishment singer/songwriter on last year's Pop Goes the Pigdog! On this follow-up, he cranks up the anger several notches, letting his satiric wit ravage the likes of Richard Ashcroft, Dick Cheney, the insanity of religious war and our very own mayor... these are the sort of songs that would, in a righteous world, become singalong hits for the masses." -John Kendle, Uptown Magazine, 2007.
"De zachte en breekbare stem van Shipley betovert terwijl de woorden beurtelings doen glimlachen en grimlachen. (Shipley' soft and breakable voice enchants one into smiling, despite the grimness inherant in the words he sings.)" -Wim Boluijt, Hanx.net, Dutch Music Zine, 2007.
"Local political musical activists the Consumer Goods choose to promote their rather lefty-green ideals through wordy and sometimes-brilliant soundscapes... lyrically intense and at times sweetly profane singer Tyler Shipley tries extra hard to get his point across." -Mike Warkentin, Winnipeg Free Press, 2006.
"From lonely folk ballads, country tinged dance-offs, and balls-out rockers Shipley and co. can take on any genre. Every track is bent on educating the listener about the horrors of the American government (past and present), but Shipley is a smart lyrist and never comes off as preachy, just hilariously blunt." -Jason Gladu, PopJournalism, 2007.
"While it's unlikely listeners will be confused by Shipley's stance on abortion, Malathion, or the situation in Iraq, they may well be thrown for a loop by his effortlessly exquisite musicianship." -David Schmeical, Winnipeg Sun, 2007
"I had never heard of this band before and basically got it out of sheer curiosity. I wish I could say I was pleasantly surprised in a good way (sic)... I won't say that the CD is bad, because it's not. I felt that half the songs were just nice, pleasant songs, and the others were Political (sic) songs that felt forced and offered no new incite (sic) to American politics... Canadians singing about how our government sucks is just kinda ridiculous to me, it's like Celebrities (sic) getting involved in stopping the war." -anonymous blogger from California, 2007.
"A politically charged Winnipeg band... what is going on there with Ashcroft and the eagle...?" -Grant Lawrence, CBC Radio Three, 2007.
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Happy Bidet has appeared on campus and community radio charts at over 20 stations and songs have been played all over North America and Europe. The record has been in earshot and chartattacks weekly and monthly top 50 rankings, and hit the top ten - sometimes as high at number one - in Lethbridge, Kamloops, Winnipeg, Kingston, North York, Toronto, and Waterloo. One song, and the final words are yours, sam katz, sparked a minor controversy in Winnipeg when it was entered into medium rotation at Kick FM, and found itself in their weekly top ten. The mayor's office was asked to comment, and replied that Sam was 'on holiday.' The record has found its way into the file-sharing bittorrent universe and is being downloaded at an incalculable rate (one torrent site had it in its top ten, after the record was ripped 147 times in one day.)
Pop Goes the Pigdog! also recieved much radio and print attention, spending two weeks at number one in Winnipeg and hanging around earshot's national top fifty for a few months. Furthermore, the record was ranked 4th overall for 2006 in UMFM's annual year-end rundown.
