[ NEW ON CD ]
Fresh, raw retro-jets
burn high octane
"6Twenty"
The D4
Hollywood / Flying NunWhat with all the hype behind retro-garage rock these days, and a New Zealand group like the Datsuns getting the buzz, it seems that fellow Kiwi group the D4 has been overlooked somewhat.
But, to these ears anyway, this band blows the Datsuns out of the water with this killer album filled with short, sweet blasts of pure high octane r'n'r. This is the kind of music that only abject boredom with daily life could generate, what with the opening salvo created by the album's first five songs, "Rock 'N' Roll MF," "Get Loose," "Party," "Come On!" and a scarily intense cover of Japanese rocker Guitar Wolf's slash-and-burn "Invader Ace." (The song order is based on the earlier American release of the album, which contained the music video for "Get Loose.")
And these guys know their history: Their additional covers of late-'70s punk rockers, like the hell-raising "Ladies Man" courtesy of the late Johnny Thunders (ex-New York Doll) and fellow countrymen the Scavengers with the Ramone-ish "Mysterex," are proof that the D4 are no flash in the pan.
The music's hyperdrive slows down a bit halfway through, but the intensity stays at level 10 with the "we-just-got-paid-and-it's Saturday-night" restlessness of "Exit to the City," "Heartbreaker," "Running on Empty" and "Little Baby" ("show me what you got").
I don't know if these guys have enough left over on their next release that is as consistent as "6Twenty" is, but in the meantime this is one refreshingly raw album that totally surrenders itself to All That Is Rock.
Click for online
calendars and events.
