The Matlocks vs The Rock United – Rumble On The Tundra
THE MATLOCKS VS THE ROCK UNITED
RUMBLE ON THE TUNDRA
Released 2005 (NLP Records)
Track List:
The Matlocks:
01. Buttcrack Baby
02. Let It Rock
03. Riding The Blues
04. Loathe You Too
05. Motorized Vehicle
06. Play It To The Bone
The Rock United:
07. Intro: Tribute To Men
08. Siegfried Und Roy
09. Burnout King
10. The Devil Speaks Swedish Tonight
11. Teuvo Does Dallas
12. Jerry
13. Stand Up And Say Raggare
The Matlocks Band:
Steve Matlock – vocals
Kenta Matlock – guitar
Uffe Matlock – guitar
Dez Matlock – bass
Chester Matlock – drums
The Rock United Band:
Fredrik “The Ribb” Risbo – vocals
Mattius “The Kunta” Kentta – guitar
Ola “Kung Diamant” Rova – guitar
Mange “The Doctor” Paajarvi – bass
Teuvo “Mr. Whipping Wanna” Vanha – drums
Review:
Rumble On The Tundra is a split CD featuring The Matlocks and a band I had never heard before, The Rock United. The album contains six songs from each (and one short intro) in an all-out battle to the death – so pull up a ringside seat and “let’s get ready to rumble”.
The Matlocks come out with both fists blazing and displaying more energy then I remember. They seem ready to take on bands such as Jet for their position at the top of the retro rock heap. The group fires off a barrage of infectious riffs and seems to have taken the best moves from D-A-D‘s training manual (especially on “Riding The Blues”). The guys seem more concerned with song structure and killer rhythms then showing off with solos, and it works very well for them. The beat of “Motorized Vehicle” and the humorous “Buttcrack Baby” would be enough to lay most opponents down for the ten-count.
However The Rock United aren’t your typical stiffs that will simply take a dive. They have an unorthodox delivery, melding Rolling Stone grooves with biker rock attitude. But their real secret weapon is vocalist Fredrik Risbo‘s voice, who possesses one of those gravelly whiskey soaked vocals that I could listen to non-stop. They completely nail amphetamine driven tongue-in-cheek-rockers like “The Devil Speaks Swedish Tonight” and “Teuvo Does Dallas”, which may in fact be two of the best songs released this year!
I really wanted to pick a winner here because draws are always such a letdown. Should the decision go to The Matlocks for consistency and commercial appeal, or should The Rock United score the victory based on potential, aggression and that incredible voice? Against my better judgment I’m going to call this a draw because everyone is a winner on Rumble On The Tundra.
Score this bout yourself at www.matlocks.net and www.therockunited.com.
Reviewed by Skid for Sleaze Roxx, November 2005.
Buy The CD:
Purchase at eBay.com