New Bomb Turks: Scared Straight

The sum total of New Bomb Turks' body of work comes to about three variations on one song. But the band has performed with such shamelessly raw intensity—accompanied by guttural shouts and revival-tent whoops—that fun overshadowed any perceived limitations. Then the band's sound caught on, to the extent that it was going to catch on, and New Bomb Turks started to make enough money so it could spend more time and energy in the studio. Therein lies the problem. The main reason Scared Straight is a let-down is not so much in the playing, but in the production. Placed in the rock-tumbler of big money, every rough edge that made the band's sound stick with you has been rendered glossy. Granted, Scared Straight has enough hell-bound rockers to keep it from falling flat—particularly the Jerry Lee Lewis-tinged "Professor Againster" or the Rocket From The Crypt-style big-horn sound of "Cultural Elite Sign-Up Sheet." But you'll still yearn for a return to fast and loose. C'mon, Turks. When the royalty checks from this roll in, spend the money on something frivolous and not studio time. You've earned it.