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THE ROCK AND ROLL MACHINE: Self-Titled

This is the first release from this Auckland threesome after six years of gigging and touring with the likes of The White Stripes, MC5, Guitar Wolf and our own D4. Time spent honing their sound and learning from the acts they play with has paid off, with a finely crafted and slightly tongue-in-cheek homage to the '60s rock they draw inspiration from. Some tracks will inevitably draw comparisons to the White Stripes - the vocals of Matt Stroobant and Karin Canzek at times sounding remarkably similar to that band, with the raw, driving rock further enhancing the similarity. But their sound is fuller than that of the White Stripes and there's a friendly humour to it that is missing from the Stripes' music. Drummer Rich Mixture hasn't altered his drumming style too much from his time in the D4, but it works here and adds to the relentless feel of the album. My only complaint with the album is that at under half an hour, it's just too short. I guess that's what the repeat button is for, and you'll want to have this one on repeat for a while.

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