NO JUSTICE, NO PIECE OF BREAD

Fowl Language was a complete departure for This Is Gordon. Gone were the twangy guitars, the tight bass-to-snare ratio, and, of course, their blue duck. If you recall, and I'm sure you do, dear Audionauts, the blue duck was never officially given a name (though many wrongly believed it to be Gordon). This unnamed animal was absent from the album for a very good reason: he was under criminal investigation for using obscene language during a live performance. Arrested on stage, Quacker Ootz, as his real name was revealed in court documents, was booked into one of the most notorious prisons in the Universe. His bandmates, while flush with cash from the success of What Do You Have To Say For Yourself Now? was about to blow through their coffers in a matter of weeks. To infuse Quacker's defense with ammunition, This Is Gordon embarked on the most experimental offering in their catalog. Little did we know that Quacker had been the one to infuse their beats with that certain Gordon-esque feel that we've come to know and love. The toe-tapping, the head bopping, the webbed linkage between the drumrolls and the bridges was locked up in a 5x5 cell, with little time out in the Yard. Fowl Language, while mellower and more electronic in nature, was a rallying cry for Quacker's release (much in the same way that Free Riley! gave The Trash Kings carte blanche to shred to the masses in defense of their furry friend). Fans didn't skip a beat; they came out in droves and bought the album 100 times over, sending its sales into a category reserved for only the mightiest of beats: Legendary. The trial itself was a circus, mostly due to the proceedings taking place in an abandoned circus tent. Still, not even the surprise witnesses and jury tampering could prevent Quacker from prevailing. Eventually, the evidence was revealed to be fabricated, and the judge dismissed the case without prejudice, returning the beloved blue duck to his adoptive family. What was next for This Is Gordon? While they offered no follow-up to Fowl Language, whether that was from fear that they would never hit the same heights or out of respect for Quacker, who hung up his beak (figuratively) in search of a nice pond and a couple of scraps of bread, we'll never know.