Black Rebel Motorcycle Club Album: “B.R.M.C. [Japan Bonus Tracks]”

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club being touted as "britpop wannabies"? Well, yes, America could use a band that rises above the cookie-cutter Blink 182/Green Day whiny, nasal vocal monotony, but now that "britpop" encompasses more folk and acoustically-aligned artists like Badly Drawn Boy, Tram or Coldplay, I don't see the necessity of accusing an American band of sounding too British ... jeezus that gets old.

BRMC is an impressive debut from this L.A.-based band, combining some of the best elements of druggy, droney 60's psychedelia and garage R&B rock; and on occasion, lead guitarist/vocalist Peter Hayes sounds uncannily like Roger (Jim) McGuinn of The Byrds (see "Too Real" or "Salvation"). BRMC sounds like a hybrid of the Jesus and Mary Chain and Spiritualized (there we go with comparisons again!), but they've also managed to carve out their own style such that you won't mistake them for either of the aforementioned. Standout songs are "Love Burns", "Whatever Happened to My Rock 'n' Roll (punk song)", "Awake", "Rifles" and "Spread Your Love". One of the most refreshing, promising American debuts in years.

I got this album a little while ago and at first it didn't blow me away, there's a whole lot going on in a small space of time that you can't pick up at first listen. In time though this album and these songs started to infect my mind and subconscious with melody's and dark poetic lines that ran together in circles and bend in your stomach like wrench. The massive sonic scope of this album is something you would only get on a Pink Floyd album or some Spiritualize jamout that lasts way to long to be interesting but BRMC holds it together at every twist and curve keeping it's self from becoming just like that. This album is a perfect coin of both raging defiance and gentle harmony.

I couldn't help but think of My Bloody Valentine and Spiritualized when i first listened but i don't think those bands are as complex as this album, if you look at their lyrics and just musically as a sonic sculpture this album has a lot more going on. I heard the stuff about this guitarist being in Brian Jonestown Massacre and the bass player being son of The Call's Michael Bean which seem like good things being both Jonestown and The Call were cutting edge for their time the punked out aggression, the nonconformists overspills it seems into B.R.M.C. if not in the lyrics but the harsh tones of "whatever happened to my rocknroll" and "spread your love".

Neverless, i really just wanted to say that this album is **** brilliant and I hope people give it a hard listen cause your gonna miss it if you don't. There's a lyric one of the last songs on my CD that says "I Keep My Head Up High To Ease My Mind of All These True Sensations" Now, I'm not sure if all that's keeping but it's amazing writing that makes this album better than anything else I've heard to in a long time and that's undeniable my droogies.

Anyone who downplays the Jesus and Mary Chain connection is just fooling themselves. There may be other influences mixed in there, but bottom line is all JAMC. And I know it's intentional. Let's see...Name: BRMC vs. JAMC, frequent unflattering references to Jesus in lyrics, oceans of melodic feedback, black and white (mostly black) photos taken in the heart of downtrodden cities, mentions of firearms, blurring backlit stages, seriousness to the point of self-caricature, and a coolness that would freeze hades. That said, this album takes the early JAMC formula and creates some fine music. In fact, this album is a much more worthy successor to the JAMC's "Sound of Speed" than "Stoned and Dethroned" or (urrghh!) "Munki" could ever hope to be.

Are they derivative? Oh yeah. But you know what? If you're going to pick a band to emulate, why not choose the coolest "twins" to ever string a guitar? And as a bonus, take their greatest tunes and meld them into your own (semi-) original creations. The songs "Love Burns", "Rifles" and "Spread Your Love" particularly evoke the JAMC gospel. (And if any of you yung 'uns want more of this type of music, you can't go wrong with the JAMC's "Psychocandy", "Darklands", "Automatic", "Barbed Wire Kisses", "Honey's Dead" or "Sound of Speed".)

At first, I almost felt guilty liking this band due to my undying loyalty to the JAMC, but sometimes the masters have to pass the torch. And I have yet to find as talented a follow-up as the BRMC. Let's just hope they never try to emulate "Munki"...

Some people hear a lot of the Jesus & Mary Chain in this band - I find more psychedelic sounds in this album - I was heavily reminded of early Blue Oyster Cult (especially the photos in the album sleeve) and Pink Floyd with some of The Doors for good measure more than anything else ("Astronomy Domine" via Southern California and you've got it). This is not a bad thing. Say what you want about BRMC being derivative, this is damn good rock & roll and a style of it that has been out of the public eye for too, too long

think

It's for records such as this one that self-styled music connoisseurs have coined dismissive comments like "over-hyped", "what's all the fuss about", "oh no, enough with the f****** BRMC", etc. BRMC's debut belongs to that brand of more-or-less-indie records that somehow manage to be more talked-about that your average indie release, eventually conquering a small degree of fame, even outside indie circles... In this they have much in common with the Strokes and therefore it's no wonder music snobs are reacting in the same way the did back when "is this it" hit the racks. Now, being a music snob myself I was relishing the idea of employing one of the aformentioned comments and dismiss this release as a derivative pile of pap. I was tempted but I have to admit that this is a good debut album, not great mind you, but definitely good! A couple of tracks clearly tower above the rest ("whatever happened to my rock 'n' roll" is clearly the highlight here...). The remainder of the tracks is generally good even if they don't attain the hip-shacking glory of the mentioned song. This is not cutting-edge stuff but it's a refreshing listen and people who like BRMC's obvious reference points (Jesus & Mary Chain, the Stone Roses...) may love this :-) My humble advice is to listen a couple of samples and judge for yourself...