Black Rebel Motorcycle Club: Baby 81

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
Baby 81
Red Ink/RCA Records [2007]









Fire Note Says: There ain't nothing like BRMC!

Album Review:
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club return revved up and supercharged with their fourth album Baby 81, fully ready to bring back the loud washed guitar sound that many so badly missed on their acoustic based Americana album Howl [2005]. Although, Howl was loved by many and impressed the media, BRMC’s core fanbase seemed split with the sound. Well Baby 81 is a callout to all those listeners that created their initial foundation because the noise is back and in top form. Let’s face it, even with the return of the beloved Jesus & Mary Chain this year, there is no other band that has the BRMC sound. Baby 81 sounds great from start to finish and just gets better with each listen. It has a nice balance with several quality mid-tempo tracks like the striking “All You Do Is Talk” and closer “Am I Only” that shows that the band has many sides along with the sparking guitar driven rock n roll. BRMC also have included their longest song ever with “American X”, a nine minute propulsive sprawling track that just seems to fit. As a whole, Baby 81 shows that BRMC have not lost any of their swagger and did not forget how to rock it out so make sure you give them the chance.

Key Tracks: "Weapon Of Choice", "666 Conducer", "Berlin"

Bands With Similar Fire:
The Jesus And Mary Chain
The Verve
The Stone Roses

Official BRMC Website
BRMC MySpace
BRMC Info [Allmusic]
RCA Records

-Reviewed by Aidan Rox