Don’t ask me why I like this band. I can’t figure it out. I hate this kind
of stuff: the dark vocals of those suicidal Goth-rockers, the jangly guitars of
every band south of the Mason-Dixon line who bought their local R.E.M.
franchise. It’s all too bloody serious. Just give me some Chuck Berry riffs and
a couple of “na-na’s” and I’ll go home, thank you.
But these guys are
different. Dave Willie’s hoarse, brooding vocals have an energy that keeps them
from getting mired in Goth-muck. Bob German’s guitar vocabulary isn’t limited to
wimpoid jingle-jangles. He is perfectly capable of snarling, and knows when
nothing short of a wall of sound will do. Jim Dye and Dave Jones form a taut and
understated rhythm section. Though there’s nothing here with the driving force
of “Water’s Edge,” from JBF’s last effort, songs like “Interstate and Speed”
present dreamlike images in a swirling vortex of guitars and urgent vocals.
Producer
Mike Poole deserves mention, for this six-song EP is as well-crafted as anything
the big boys put out. Somebody ought to give him a zillion dollars so he can get
about the business of saving rock & roll from itself. So roll over, Chuck
Berry, and tell NRBQ the news, ‘cause this one’s going to be on my turntable for
a while. (391 Records, released 1988)
Review originally published by The Metro, 1988
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