Rock N Roll Is Still Here To Stay

BOB BURNS & THE BREAKUPS - Terminal Breakdown (www.gearheadrecords.com)
Rock 'n' roll, especially the fringer areas, has always been awash with beautiful losers (aka- really cool bands that either implode or just never get the right breaks.) Maybe that's why Bob Burns and the Breakups are so refreshing. These desperately confessional songs ("Under Your Skin," "Some Feeling," "In My Way," "On My Nerves") reveal a band with little doubt about how to write and perform rock 'n' roll songs (I'd love to see these guys live.)

Like Mike Ness of Social Distortion, The Breakups know all too well what it's like to be a down and out loser; but also like Ness, they also know about the redeeming qualities that can be found in rock 'n' roll, with faith, hope and love as part of the reward. With the no-frills, aggressively bare-bones backing of Bryce-drums and Zac-bass/vocals, Bob Burns (guitar/ vocals) nudges the band past the crap that happens in everyone's lives, towards a raucous, punk rock nirvana. The Breakups pour it on in "Fashion Hippie" with Supersuckers-worthy rabble-rousing rock 'n' roll! "Real Live Girl" keeps up the hook-pumped, harmony-choked, power punk with simultaneously innocent, hint-and-wink lyrics, all about sex, sex, sex. All of which make for an unbeatable combination. "Thunderbird," and "Rip it Up," all deliver on their three minutes of promised ecstasy, while "Little Fake" will raise the hair on your arms, and should go down as one of the great punk rock songs of all time, that is, if you get up off your asses and go buy this record. Otherwise, this will go down in the record books as one of the great under-rated punk rock records. It's all on your shoulders.- Phil Rainone

KARATE HIGH SCHOOL - The League of Tomorrow (Evolution Music)
At first it was a little hard to swallow reading the band's press kit about the album being about "Sub-par science fiction and comic book lore without sounding trite..." but about halfway through with soaring melodies and crashing guitars as a backdrop, the album turns into a really good book. By that I mean it's like the best of both worlds where the written word meets the music. It's like those books that they put on CD, only music is added for better effect. In other words, it's a lot of fun! Songs like "The Secret Handshake," "Can't Hold Me Down," or "The Empire State" are injected with a sense of humor but not the silly stuff. It's on a more mature level which is sometimes a little offensive, but on the money, none the less. Karate High School doesn't soften or dumb-down the story or the music. Ingenuity and intrigue are found rampant throughout the album. You can't wait to see what happens next. The band plays enthusiasticlly, and I'm sure their live set is like a no-holds-barred rock show. The public in general is use to a lot less, so be prepared to be somewhat amazed!- Phil Rainone