Now that punk and rock 'n' roll have become benign, saturated parodies of their former selves, it's always nice to hear a band who keep things simple. ** The Roolettes** are one such band, delivering scuzzed-up, good time rock 'n' roll.
And that's the way it should be. 10 tracks of high-octane punk rock is all good and well, but fill it with hooks in all the right places, sleazy riffs that make you wanna stick on your Doc Martens, leather jacket, and just go _rock the fuck out_, and you're halfway there. Top it off with the credibility of the Ramones, and lyrics like "_Just two cigarettes left on my desk/that's the only thing I just can't stand_", and you've got the right formula. Songs like 'Cigarette Breakdown' and 'She Don't Know' are shouty punk rock stomps through all the best bits of US punk, the Datsuns and AC/DC on speed; 'Ciao Punk' will make you dance until you break sweat with it's Motown-meets-garage punk "ooh ooh ooh"s; '_1000 Times_' is a sure-fire future club clap-a-long.
The problem is, as with all rock 'n' roll records of this nature, is that The Roolettes seem to lack imagination. When you reach the halfway point, you do begin to feel as though you've heard it already. Sure, it's a big dumb rock band with dumb rock lyrics and dumb rock riffs, and you shouldn't expect anything other than catchy choruses and plenty of shoutalong moments, but it tends to sound like a single that's been put on repeat.
Still, with 10 songs packed into a sweaty, danceable 25 minutes-or-so, The Roolettes don't need to hold your attention for long. It's the right length for an album of its sort, and all the better for it. There's enough adrenaline and fat riffery in here to keep you listening.
For fans of: The Datsuns
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7Stu Chown's Score