LEFT LANE CRUISER - UP

Ever dreamed about driving an old, beat down monster truck along the banks of the Mississippi river, tearing nature apart bit by bit? I have, but never thought anybody would do it for real. At least not the way Left Lane Cruiser is sliding that ragged old mixture of steel, rust and rubber through the mud. 'Cause muddy it is -and dirty- - and gritty- the way Joe Evans aka Freddy J IV (guitar/vocals) and Brenn 'Sausage Paw' Beck (drums/percussion/harmonica/(backing) vocals) are spitting out their own brand of stripped down, whiskey-soaked, adrenaline-fuelled, bottom heavy blues. You don't believe me? Well, then you just have to buy this album, experience the truth and get blown away by the first pounding slide riff of 'Wash It', one hell of a booty shakin' swamp blues hymn that will definitely bring a huge smile to R.L. Burnside's face, knowing two white blokes are carrying his heritage, making the world burn and blister with heartfelt black music that's got Jon Spencer's rock&roll veins throbbing at the core. Raw, pure and intense. And that's probably the key that makes this album so special. LLC takes it all one step further, creating a wall of sound with just two humble musicians, while in the meantime they're literally tearing down everything in sight - and internally. At the end of the seventh track you even have to scrape Joe's vocal chords off the ground and shove 'em back up his throat to make sure he will keep growling for the remainder of the album. And he needs 'em badly towards the end when destruction reaches its gritty height with the dirty, low tuned groover 'Amy's in the Kitchen' and the bonecrushing 'Mr. Johnson'. On the other hand, it feels quite arbitrary naming any standout track on a record that brings ass to the table big time with twelve tracks that make it impossible to stay in your seat, and even more difficult not to smash your furniture to smithereens. And the best part is: you don't even care putting up with the mess.- Ronny Dijksterhuis / Up (Netherlands)