No Name No Color (Deluxe Edition)

The Sacramento-based duo of guitarist Zack Lopez and drummer Sean Stockham dubbed Middle Class Rut uses the same spare instrumentation as the White Stripes, and for the most part, the two also ape that band's approach, turning out hard rock stompers on their full-length debut, No Name No Color. The big difference lies in the vocals, which resemble Perry Farrell much more than Jack White, possibly as much a function of the echo and filtering effects applied to them as of the actual timbre. Like the White Stripes, Middle Class Rut often harks back to the sound of Led Zeppelin, notably on the "Kashmir"-like "I Guess You Could Say." The lyrics detail a variety of complaints, many of them directed at a significant other, but also sometimes at the world in general. "What I get ain't half of what I give," the singer complains in the lead-off track, "Busy Bein' Born," adding, "give it back or I'll take it." So far, Middle Class Rut doesn't seem likely to assume the mantle of the White Stripes, though the chart success of "New Low" suggests commercial potential.