Street Fightin’ Men: The Rock ‘N’ Roll Soldiers
By Dean Bonzani
10.31.05
You gotta love a rock album that starts with “One! Two! Three! Four!”
Eugene, Oregon’s Rock ‘N’ Roll Soldiers are a lot like Disneyland— you can embrace them without thought and have a good time (which is what most of Rock is all about anyway), or reject them as caricatures of some sort of “real thing.”
I was ready to write them off by the time that I got through reading their promo pack’s overwrought bio, their first line of introduction to a prospective music article writer. That, and I’m convinced that it jinxes a band to write a song with the outfit’s name in it, (Wang Chung and Art In America come to mind), which is exactly what RNRS have done in the first cut of their The Two EP’s CD, called, accurately enough, “Anthem.” Luckily, their website’s videos made up for the bungling bio, the spastic live-wire energy of lanky singer Marty Larson-Xu invoking a genuine rock frontman spirit, even if he’s copped his fair share of moves from Iggy, Mick, Joey Ramone, and David Johansen. Larson-Xu fearlessly delivers bigger-than-life lyrics with a throaty chirp reminiscent of Tom Verlaine or the White Stripes’ Jack White, and comes on like a true believer, walking the walk and talking the talk of someone living the Rock and Roll life and happy to tell you about it at high volume.
From the band’s website, here is their own description of just why these lads are fighting a war for Rock ‘n’ Roll music:
“Childhood friends from Eugene, Oregon, the ROCK ‘N’ROLL SOLDIERS play high energy rock that combines old influences with youthful energy. The Soldiers have fought bravely to co-exist in the Eugene music scene, fighting against a plethora of local hippie folk rock jam bands who badmouth the Soldiers saying that they are nothing but teenage drunks. Luckily, the Soldiers have an immense group of loyal fans that support and fight for them. Their neighbors hate them, and the police have come three times in the last month to shut them down. But they will not give up…”
Rock on, Wayne.
Seriously, it messes with a rock musician’s mind to swim upstream like a ROCK ‘N’ ROLL SALMON in a town full of bluegrass, folk, and jam band-age. Singer Larson-Xu, guitarist Kevin Sciou, bassist Evan Seroffsky, and drummer Oliver Brown have just the right kind of chip on their shoulders to kick tail to the top or die trying. (Incidentally, death-by-trying historically guarantees a posthumous fame for young rockers.) They rock with conviction, and their sound is brash, sweaty, sexy, and full of stripling sass.
The lyrics to “Anthem” say it all. I’ve substituted “salmon” for “soldiers” in this version, to underscore the vicious struggle that the band has undergone for their music.
yeaaaaaah! /HUH!! / ah, yeah!
Turn off the sound of silence /Garfunkel just killed Simon /My mouth just keeps on climbin’ /Up, up, up, up, up, and I mean, /Ok, our music’s violent /Explodes like dynamite and /Light bulbs but no ideas /Now you’re gonna see it
[chorus] We’re the cold hand slidin’ down your warm shirt /We’re the of last the Rock ‘N’ Roll Salmon /We’re the bad man comin’ and it won’t hurt /We’re the motherf*ckin’ Rock ‘N’ Roll Salmon
That’s right we’re comin’ in /Don’t lose,we always win, /We’ll tell it like it is: /EVERYBODY IS OUR B*TCH!! /If you don’t agree with this /Take a second and try our chips /Roasted to perfection /Flavorful, not flavorless
[chorus]
oooooOOOOHHHHHHHH!!! OW!! yeeeeeaahhhhhh!!! ow!!
(Transcription courtesy of Alex Houston.)
All joking aside, the Soldiers’ tune, “Funny Little Feeling” is a stick-in-your-head classic that’s worth the price of admission with its Def Leppard call-and-response shout outs, catchy chorus and pounding rhythm. The Two EP’s CD is a sincere and original homage to the giants of blues-based Rock, and live, the guys tear up a stage in true rebel rocker fashion.
See ‘em.
Rock ‘N’ Roll Soldiers w/ the Vacation at The Boardwalk, Fri., Nov. 4 th. Show starts at 9:30 P.M. Wear your Chuck Taylors and tear the knees out of your 501’s.