Rats of Unusual Size - Live at Desmonds, NYC, 8/11/01. “We’re the Rats, from Flint Michigan,” said Jim Fourniadis clad in a huge hospital gown. Maybe it’s me, but I think the band could be in a rut. All but a handful of songs were from, or inspired by television. “Fat Albert,” a forgotten jingle for Razzles candy,” the self-deprecating “My Butts too Big,” cover of “I am Giligan,” Rats’ classic “Macho Shithead,” tourism slogan-inspired “New Jersey and You, Perfect Together,” Rats classic “Argh,” (from a CD you can buy from MMG Mail Order) was punctuated by a full-crowd Argh, “Don’t shoot the Pope,” “Stench,” about a girl that looked really good but smelled really bad with the line “I’ll hold my breath because she looked so fine.” There were more, a song about the home shopping network, another about big Jim’s refrigerator, “Jesus was a Jew,” and “Sunny Days,” -- yeah the Sesame Street tune. The band is the same irreverent, brash, loud bunch of punks they were 15 years ago, but so many of us have changed. Still, those who remember the Rats from their New York City days came out on this balmy Saturday night for a trip in the time machine. Of course instead of CBGB’s, it was a funky old-man’s bar on Park Ave. south. Ironic? Maybe not. Though they couldn’t possibly touch “Arghh,” the next band up, Lone Wolves, opened with a pirate song of their own. As far as I know, the Sea Monkeys, who preceded the Rats, didn’t play a pirate song. - Ment