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Omaha's greatest rock'n'roll band are back with a new album (their fourth), and this time out the boys have even written some liner notes that have more or less done my job for me:
"Some may think that We Came In Peace (their 2008 album) was the sound of us maturing and really finding our thing. If that's the case, this album is a major episode of regression. Ha ha!"
It turns out the band are astute critics of their own work. We Came In Peace really was a major leap forward for them in terms of songwriting and recording (thanks in no small part to Jim Diamond's excellent production job), and instead of building off of their accomplishments, Brimstone Howl seem to have retreated from them. "Big Deal. What's He Done Lately?" (taken from a Johnny Ramone quote about Phil Spector) is a good enough album, but it's marred by treble-heavy production that lacks nuance and turns what used to be sharp, well-crafted attacks into thrashy blurs. Bad production or not, the band still smokes with razor sharp intensity throughout, marrying demon-preacher vocals similar to Eddie Cochran, Jerry Lee Lewis and Iggy Pop with 76/77-era white-hot punk aggression in a way that excites and feels new. Even if this is a case where a good album is a disappointment, I'll still be getting plenty of spins from "Easter At The Lewises", the wild rocker "Last Time" and "Suicide Blues", an explosive track which cops a few moves from "I'm Waiting For The Man". We Come In Peace is the best entry point for people looking for their first taste of Brimstone Howl, but if you if you've already liked what you heard there, then by all means seek this album out for another reminder that good simple rock music is still alive and well.
DAVID MANSDORF
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