"The Further Adventures Of Los
Straitjackets"
Los Straitjackets
Yep Roc, 2009
(Review by Jeff Berkwits)
It's been six years since
these four luchador-rock legends cranked out an album filled entirely with
original tunes, and while the 30-minute running time of this 14-song instrumental
effort is unforgivably short, nearly every composition is brimming with
get-up-and-go guitars and dynamic surf beats.
The first two tracks,
"Cal-Speed" and "Challenger 64," kick off the collection with gusto, setting
a vintage sand-and-sun mood, with subsequent selections supplying an at
times harder (yet still classic) edge.
Other notable numbers
include "Nocturnal Twist," which offers a whimsical nod to Earl Hagen's
"Harlem Nocturne" (AKA the theme to Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer TV show),
and the surprisingly languid "Mercury." That final composition notwithstanding,
the recording as a whole is a brief yet boisterous bout that nicely showcases
both the band's musical sense of adventure and their signature "Sturm und
Twang" style.
Buy this album from
Los Straitjackets
Website>>>
A long-time aficionado of retro music and movies, Jeff Berkwits
has covered vintage sounds for numerous publications and websites including
Bachelor
Pad Magazine, Filmfax, Outré, and
Amazing Stories.
He can be reached at jeffberkwits@sbcglobal.net.
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