a turn for the better

Bottle Rocket (Myrrh) Guardian

By Robert Gruber

Get ready to light the fuse on a sonic adventure _ Bottle Rocket is Guardian at their best. This one-time lite-metal band has, with the help of producer Steve Taylor, concocted a sure-fire formula that bangs loud from one end to the other.

Working the same magic with Guardian as he did with the Newsboys, Steve Taylor adds lyrics and production tricks to Guardian that enables them to regroove their sound from Tesla territory into the relevant modern rock stylings of such bands as Stone Temple Pilots and Bleach. Singer Jamie Rowe has tempered his trademark rasp into a lower register that lends credulity to pointed lyrics from tracks like "Are We Feeling Comfortable Yet?" Guitarist Tony Palacious trades his hard rockin' leads in for huge, fuzzy, busted-amp parts that get in your face and stay there on songs like "Bottle Rocket" and "Coffee Can." The seamless rhythm section of bassist David Bach and drummer Karl Ney create an impenetrable, yet shimmering wall of sound. Bottle Rocket is fourteen songs that may change your mind about Guardian _ for good.