Hot Rod Circuit “The Underground is a Dying Breed” CD

2007 has already yielded a surprisingly high number of massively over-hyped albums that, while decent, have ultimately failed to deliver. But then there's "The Underground is a Dying Breed" (on Immortal Records), the latest gem from Hot Rod Circuit, which I had no idea was even on the horizon, and was actually out in stores for a few weeks before I even learned of its existence!? And what's more, this is by far the best CD I've bought all year, further solidifying in my mind the fact that these guys must be one of the most overlooked bands of the last decade. I first stumbled upon their extremely unique brand of emo/indie rock/whatever the hell you want to call it a couple of years ago after buying their 2004 release, "Reality's Coming Through", on a whim for no particular reason. Well, that damn thing probably didn't leave the CD player in my car for a fucking month (and that almost never happens), and in less than a week's time I've already listened to "The Underground is a Dying Breed" 10 times more than any other CD I've bought so far this year, so... the trend continues, and this band remains a sorely underrated force that should, by all means, be hugely fucking popular.

I mean, they basically write relentlessly catchy albums chock full of memorable, melodic rock songs—and when I say catchy, I mean fucking catchy. Emo, indie rock, whatever, yeah... but it's more than that. It's not that cheap, simple, poppy bullshit, you know? There are elements of a certain "poppy" aesthetic to some degree—killer vocal harmonies and hooks that you can sing along to within a couple of listens (though they get stuck in your head immediately)—but... I don't know, from a songwriting standpoint it's not super stripped down or anything, there's a hell of a lot going on in terms of layering and dynamics and technique and all that shit... so I fucking dare you to claim it's generic in any way whatsoever, 'cause it's simply not. Plain fact. Hell, if nothing else, just the fact that they occasionally (and effectively) employ keyboards and pedal steel to lend a "country"-ish twang to some of the riffing separates them from damn near all of their contemporaries. It's there, it really is. But I fucking despise country music and love the shit outta these guys, so... don't get the wrong impression, okay? I don't know, just check 'em out for yourself and see. Gorgeous production, amazing songwriting... vocalist/guitarist/chief songwriter Andy Jackson is basically a fucking genius. Hats off, my man. There's no way in hell this thing's not gonna be one of the best releases of the year. Love these guys. Love 'em. End gushing.

Hot Rod Circuit "Stateside"
Hot Rod Circuit "Battleship"

You might suck if you don't like this band. I'm just sayin'. So if you do like it, please buy it... 'cause the last thing I want is for yet another extraordinarily awesome band to wither away before their time because they can't make motherfuckers "get it" or whatever. Purchase:

Immortal Records
RevHQ
Very Distribution