Susan Frances
07/16/08, 07:02 PM
The Atomic Atoms - Electrophile
Record Label: Indicity Records
Release Date: April 12, 2008
The Atomic Atoms story begins when three musicians - singer/guitarist Adam Zinser (aka Addam Atom), drummer Adam LaVigne, and bassist Tommy Cappel came together at an open mic night in Cincinnati, Ohio. They formed a band and called themselves The Atomic Atoms, but then changed their name to Drunky Brewster after picking up their new drummer Freddy Brackmann; hence their Myspace page: myspace.com/thedrunkybrewsters. The band changed their name back to The Atomic Atoms and have released their latest record, under said name, Electrophile from Indicity Records. Their music is one part roots rock, one part heartland rock, and a whole lot of country rock with a post-punk punch. Produced by Tommy Cappel and Adam Zinser, Electrophile is a marriage of country music’s Buck Owens and Dwight Yoakam with the roots rock flint of Jeff Buckley and Lucero.
The chugging railroad rhythms of “Still Ain’t Coming Home” and “Psalm 27” have shadows of country rock fuses, while the boogie rock thrusts of “Feedback Pirouette” have an energetic phrasing that resonates with a roots rock flare. The breezy rounds of folk rock guitar clips in “I Won’t Hold My Breath” and “Choose Your Own Adventure” trundle at a nice thumping speed, while the slowly relaxed ringlets in the rhythms lining “Fine Prayers” have a gospel-folk hue with a modern rock tint. The Atomic Atoms show a true passion in the music they make. The music has a trendy pub rock vibe relatable to American Steel, and like AM, the album is filled with bushels of post-punk gusto. The jazz-punk edges of “The J.S” have a spy-funk intonation reminiscent of the music featured in ’50s spy movies and the Get Smart TV shows of the ‘60s, while the straight SoCal punk of “The Tension” have a modern rock pumping. The Atomic Atoms turn to a Black Sabbath stylized metal on “Here We Go Again” and then tone it down to a wistful pitch in “Nothing Rhymes With Rachel.“
There is such history in The Atomic Atoms music that sometimes you feel like you are listening to vintage material from the ‘50s and ‘60s, just with a contemporary coloring which they brandish in the escalating chords of “The Perks.” The band varies their country rock pivots from fast and frenzied like in “Shoot To Kill” to sparsely layered like in “Jesus Christ.” Their lyrics are emotionally based. Sometimes they revolve around fictional tales about people’s malice towards each other like in “Jesus Christ,” and sometimes the lyrics are about lingering feelings left over from a relationship like in “Feedback Pirouette.” The verses profess, “The voice in my head says, ’Baby, you wanna bleed,’ and I can’t control this livid side of me for all I’m worth / And I’m beginning to see it was love / And she’s inside my head just hanging around / So maybe baby you’re here or maybe you’re killing time / And I can’t figure it out.” The lyrics reveal complicated feelings that mess up one’s mind and the direction to take.
While the words depict an internal struggle going on with one’s feelings which are causing chaos and confusion, the music keeps to a melodic template. The Atomic Atoms record, Electrophile has an inherent roots rock feel with a post-punk punch. They keep the album about living life to its fullest, jumping into the deep end, even if at times, you feel like you’re drowning. The Atomic Atoms album shows that the bruising only makes one stronger.
Lucero, Jeff Buckley, American Steel
www.myspace.com/thedrunkybrewsters (http://www.myspace.com/thedrunkybrewsters)
Record Label: Indicity Records
Release Date: April 12, 2008
The Atomic Atoms story begins when three musicians - singer/guitarist Adam Zinser (aka Addam Atom), drummer Adam LaVigne, and bassist Tommy Cappel came together at an open mic night in Cincinnati, Ohio. They formed a band and called themselves The Atomic Atoms, but then changed their name to Drunky Brewster after picking up their new drummer Freddy Brackmann; hence their Myspace page: myspace.com/thedrunkybrewsters. The band changed their name back to The Atomic Atoms and have released their latest record, under said name, Electrophile from Indicity Records. Their music is one part roots rock, one part heartland rock, and a whole lot of country rock with a post-punk punch. Produced by Tommy Cappel and Adam Zinser, Electrophile is a marriage of country music’s Buck Owens and Dwight Yoakam with the roots rock flint of Jeff Buckley and Lucero.
The chugging railroad rhythms of “Still Ain’t Coming Home” and “Psalm 27” have shadows of country rock fuses, while the boogie rock thrusts of “Feedback Pirouette” have an energetic phrasing that resonates with a roots rock flare. The breezy rounds of folk rock guitar clips in “I Won’t Hold My Breath” and “Choose Your Own Adventure” trundle at a nice thumping speed, while the slowly relaxed ringlets in the rhythms lining “Fine Prayers” have a gospel-folk hue with a modern rock tint. The Atomic Atoms show a true passion in the music they make. The music has a trendy pub rock vibe relatable to American Steel, and like AM, the album is filled with bushels of post-punk gusto. The jazz-punk edges of “The J.S” have a spy-funk intonation reminiscent of the music featured in ’50s spy movies and the Get Smart TV shows of the ‘60s, while the straight SoCal punk of “The Tension” have a modern rock pumping. The Atomic Atoms turn to a Black Sabbath stylized metal on “Here We Go Again” and then tone it down to a wistful pitch in “Nothing Rhymes With Rachel.“
There is such history in The Atomic Atoms music that sometimes you feel like you are listening to vintage material from the ‘50s and ‘60s, just with a contemporary coloring which they brandish in the escalating chords of “The Perks.” The band varies their country rock pivots from fast and frenzied like in “Shoot To Kill” to sparsely layered like in “Jesus Christ.” Their lyrics are emotionally based. Sometimes they revolve around fictional tales about people’s malice towards each other like in “Jesus Christ,” and sometimes the lyrics are about lingering feelings left over from a relationship like in “Feedback Pirouette.” The verses profess, “The voice in my head says, ’Baby, you wanna bleed,’ and I can’t control this livid side of me for all I’m worth / And I’m beginning to see it was love / And she’s inside my head just hanging around / So maybe baby you’re here or maybe you’re killing time / And I can’t figure it out.” The lyrics reveal complicated feelings that mess up one’s mind and the direction to take.
While the words depict an internal struggle going on with one’s feelings which are causing chaos and confusion, the music keeps to a melodic template. The Atomic Atoms record, Electrophile has an inherent roots rock feel with a post-punk punch. They keep the album about living life to its fullest, jumping into the deep end, even if at times, you feel like you’re drowning. The Atomic Atoms album shows that the bruising only makes one stronger.
Lucero, Jeff Buckley, American Steel
www.myspace.com/thedrunkybrewsters (http://www.myspace.com/thedrunkybrewsters)