The Outlets

The lost art of rock & roll is rediscovered with a vengeance by David Alex Barton and his Outlets on this self-titled album. Co-produced by John McDermott with Kevin Army, the band is in good hands after slugging it out in the trenches of Boston during the '80s. John McDermott co-produces Jimi Hendrix's catalog releases along with Janie Hendrix, and the affiliation can only help artists this serious about their craft. This is a rock & roll onslaught — "Sorry" is a refreshing blast of guitar-oriented garage rock. This is the music that can save so-called "modern rock radio," a term that is already an anachronism. What is really needed is a three-minute burst of sound that is "Eddy." Barton doesn't stay on key — he never did — and his vocal style is much like Jon Felice of the Real Kids, but the Outlets drive their songs faster and with more ferocity than the Real Kids, and the jangly guitar tends to extend its claws with a nice buzzsaw edge. "You Don't Need Them" changes the mood with tension and lyrics that take a Joe Jackson riff and re-evaluate it, while "Wired" goes where Smashing Pumpkins' "1979" tried to. As the album progresses, the drums and guitars start melting into a solid unit that makes you want to turn the volume up. There is none of that technical wash that strips away the substance and heart of new records, creating dissonance and unnecessary high end. This is the real thing, solid as a rock, and a guitar starts going haywire two and a half minutes into "Wired" — possibly the most explosive track on a very explosive record. The Outlets had much promise in the past, and one wonders if a record this good can cut through all the politics and just get substantial airplay. Here's a second chance for the world to hear their classic "Sheila." It's still bouncy and driving, and deserves a long ride on the airwaves. The fun that the Buzzcocks brought to their best recordings is inherent in this disc, tempered by the American sound the Nervous Eaters helped forge. Despite their veteran status, the Outlets still rock like teenagers on this 13-song disc, and that's what it is all about.