The Illusion of Quality

Victoria, British Columbia rockers Moneyshot look and sound like long-haired heshers from western Canada, but their connection to their audience has more in common with anarchist punk collectives inspired by the likes of Crass or Fugazi: on their regular cross-Canada tours, ticket prices are nominal, and CDs are free for the asking. It's all about the fans, eh? That same level of blue-collar unpretentiousness suffuses The Illusion of Quality, which is a straightforward hard rock album in the style of AC/DC or Canadian legends like Max Webster or Bachman-Turner Overdrive. But this is straight '70s boogie, understand — none of that nod-and-a-wink role playing of the Darkness or Wolfmother here. Singers Tim Rodier and Josh Erickson have rough Everyman voices perfectly suited for the meat and potatoes rock & roll of tunes like "You Ain't Nothin'." But this isn't dumb music, as snotty indie hipsters might initially dismiss it: a song like "All My Neurons" is as sharp and funny a tune about adolescent angst as anything the Queers or the Mr. T Experience have written on the topic. At 13 songs in just over an hour, The Illusion of Quality starts to drag a bit towards the end, but the best stuff here is outstanding.