Black Rebel Motorcycle Club

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club: Peter Hayes (vocals, guitar, harmonica, keyboards, bass); Robert Turner (vocals, guitar, keyboards, bass); Nick Jago (drums, percussion).
Engineers include: Peter Hayes, Robert Turner, David Shiffman.
The brooding Los Angeles-based Black Rebel Motorcycle Club belies its roots in sunny California with a dark, edgy sound that is indebted to 1980s/early-'90s British shoegazer bands, particularly the architects of the sound, Jesus & Mary Chain. While many bands take at least a few albums to work up to their full sonic range, the BRMC presents a dense, wide-screen set of songs on its assured 2001 debut. (In fact, the group would spend subsequent releases scaling back the formidable aesthetic on offer here.)
"Love Burns" opens the record and establishes the BRMC template with slowly building intensity, as jangly guitar lines shift into thick layers of distortion and the coolly detached vocals of Peter Hayes and Robert Turner (who alternate playing guitar and bass) evoke scenes of disillusionment and damaged love. While many of BLACK REBEL MOTORCYCLE CLUB's tunes are effective mid-tempo tracks (particularly "Awake," which unleashes majestic, Ride-like squalls of feedback), "Whatever Happened to My Rock 'N' Roll (Punk Song)" is a blistering, revved-up number that recalls the fervor of the Stooges. Regardless of influences, the BRMC warrants attention by the sheer force of its music, making this an album for those who like their rock bold, brash, and unapologetically loud.

• Genre: Pop
• RSD Release Date: DDD
• Format: Vinyl
• Released: 05/13/14