Hamburg, Germany’s NIXON NOW does rock hard. That’s a no-brainer. “Altamont Nation Express” brings me back to the days when every other Sub Pop/Am Rep act pummeled us with bulldozed piles from the rubble back in the late 80s and very early 90s. Back when grunge was gnarly STOOGES / MC5-inspired rock bands out to destroy anything and everything in their paths rather than the obligatory “Seattle sound” that included groups that were almost the opposite of what grunge was to those of us who knew better (PEARL JAM, ALICE IN CHAINS, STP, etc). This makes me think of MUDHONEY, THE FLUID, CAT BUTT, Atlanta’s GO-DEVILS, and like 20 other bands from that time. The only problem is that I have kind of grown up since those days and require a little more diversity in my music. And yes, this includes four-piece rock bands. Part of what makes bands like MONSTER MAGNET and QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE so appealing is that they put different ingredients into their rock recipes. NIXON NOW faithfully treads it’s narrow purist path and by the end of 15 songs, they spread themselves a little thin. Of course, this not to say that hearing this type of rock again ain’t spiritually or aesthetically pleasing.

Tracks like “Revolver”, “Bad World”, and “Burning Down the Neighborhood” can really put one in attack mode with the four to tha floor. Gets the juices pumpin’ if ya know what I mean. I can see our own Two Tub Man fully appreciating this one. They appropriate the disco chestnut “Car Wash” so slickly into their repertoire that it is easy to hear it and think of it as a NIXON NOW original. Only on “Shake” and their cover of THIN LIZZY's “The Rocker” do they get past the distortion/wah and enlist the use of a phaser pedal. The album closes with the ever-droning instrumental “Electric Teenage Nurnberg” - which is perhaps one of the album's best cuts. NIXON NOW may have not added anything new to the rock stew, but the taste is still quite superb. I may prefer them in smaller doses, however they will get repeat coverage in the DMD camp. If anything, it’s fun to crank this shit up around co-workers who think of STAIND and DISTURBED as great rock music.

- Herring

OFFICIAL SITE: www.nixonnow.net

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