Sleazegrinder

Desert-sweating outlaws Greenhaven play brawling Texan-style riff n’ roll with a propulsive, elephant riding beat and lotsa slippery biker metal guitars. They’re actually from Phoenix, and I’m sure folks occasionally shoot a man just to watch him die in that town, too, but this just smells like something from the bowels of South Texas. It’s pure attitude and ego, with a strong, chest thumping vocal perf from Matt Strangeways and some clever rock n’ roll lyrics (Well, ok, maybe not “She’s got the stars in her eyes/I feel my temperature rise”, but “Propane and cocaine/I’ve rode more rails than a freight train” is pretty cool, no?) to back up the greasy fistfight rawk. Stylistically, I’d put ‘em somewhere between The Four Horsemen and Puny Human, only with a healthy dose of crunchy grunge tossed over the top. I dunno if their bass player Uncle Dave really has been arrested more times than Mark Farner, but it sure sounds like it here. “The Last Powerful Second” is a gleefully excessive throwback to the good ol’ daze of beltbuckle metal, and I fuckin’ LIKE it, man. And just like the good ol’ daze, Greenhaven don’t overstay their welcome. They bash out ten meaty tracks and then split, sparing us the extra half hour of filler. If only more bands stopped wasting my time with their half-baked bullshit, I wouldn’t be old and gray already. So thank you, Greenhaven. For everything.