www.thepocketrockets.com
Right. First things first. The Rockets are surprisingly less the goofyguttertrash merchants than their name initially suggests. (See, I asked Mr. Sleazegrinder what they were like as he sent me a badge along with the cd's a while ago and as their badge has adorned my guitar strap along with The Stones, The Clash and my Las Vegas sheriff's badge I figured it'd be worth hearing them.) They instead loiter on a much darker early '80's end of the street corner, kicking their heels along to early Fan and the Bellows era Chameleons (possibly the only decent, at times great band to come out of my accidentally adopted home town) and also Joy Division (who aren't, despite all the eulogies). One track Look in the Mirror really does sound a bit like early Duran Duran - This is Planet Earth, something like that. At times bleak and barren and driven along on Hooky-fied bass lines (We'll Be On Our Own) they also combine this with upbeat bolts of newwavesharpshock like on closer Not The Girl Next Door. They have a welcome habit too of occasionally using changes that aren't startlingly obvious to telegraph, creating a useful tension in the tunes. On the first couple of listens there were times when you know, or think you know, where it's gonna go and it sort of doesn't, which is good. As ever being monumentally unprepared and fitfully forgetful I'm guessing when I say that that occurs best on False Promises but I'm pretty damn sure it is.
Sometimes tho it seems as tho' they're being held back a bit by the constraints of the studio, which is perfectly unnerstandable. Not that there's any deficiency of energy but things, well the guitars especially, sound a bit TOO carefully played. I know you gotta get these things right and it's hard when there's no budget to spend aeons on getting used to the set-up but I get the feeling that live they'd REALLY gun it, like most bands worth their salt, and let loose in grand fashion.
Do like the sleeve notes for it tho too, reasoning why they put it out on a CDR. Get this. "Rock'n'Roll's never been stopped by flashing graphics, extra bonus packages and millionaire budget promotional activites (altho it helps)" and "we have plenty of vinyl 7'' with b/w labels glued together by some guitar players girlfriend during weekends and we like them all the same". Well said, guys, and glad I heard em at last and like with the 50 Tons of Black Terror it's a welcome change to have something different to Stooge schlock garage rock by numbers. - Stu Gibson