Chimpomatic

The Bronx

The Bronx (II)

You might have missed The Bronx (I), but 'they're back' with this self-titled second album. This isn't Led Zeppelin II however, or even Tindersticks II. The Bronx are a strange mix, falling between Guns 'n Roses (Gilby Clarke produced their early recordings) and the Rollins Band (or even Annihilate This Week era Black Flag), but strangely seeming almost like Pavement - certainly in terms of their excellent video History Strangler's. That's a lot of links, commas and brackets, but this is a band that's hard to define.

The credibility supplied by not actually looking like Gwar gave a me a reason to persevere, and I like this band a lot. They know how to rock and they know how to play it loud. Senor Hombre sets the scene with some mystical hokus pokus before we're off into the meat of the album. Shitty Future is an awesome rolling track, and History's Strangler's is equal to the task. Things mellow out a bit with Dirty Leaves, which has a much more bluesy sound - letting you see some of the influences that the band must have. It dips a bit after that with some questionable morality tales (Rape Zombie, Three Dead Sisters) that must have some point, but towards the the end it's back to firing on all cylinders and you get more of what this band is good at - playing loud in your car or at home while your girlfriend (or parents) are out.

Turn it up to 11.