Rob Moss, formerly of the legendary Artificial Peace and Government Issue, is back with a new solo album. Billed to Rob Moss and Skin-Tight Skin, Now with More Rockets is robust step up from Rob's last solo record. The sound here is richer, the rock punchier, and the tunes even more energetic.
Opener "A Rocket Ship to You" roars out of the gate like something from Gray Matter, peers of Rob's old D.C. bands, while "A Donkey" takes the absurdist approach of classic "Dog Food"-era Iggy Pop and weds that to Rob's uniquely harDCore-inspired brand of modern rock. The cut's silly in a lyrical sense, but punchy as hell. Elsewhere, "Ink Blue Smoke" oozes cool, recalling the kind of attitude that informed old Richard Hell or Lou Reed records in the late Seventies. Rob sells this well, and the percussion from the legendary Danny Frankel (Urban Verbs) and a rotating cast of guitarists adds to the beefy power of these punk-rock numbers.
"I'm On a Rocket Ship (Heading My Way Back Home)" might have the sharpest hook here, even as "All Over Town", featuring backing vocals from the underrated Martha Hull (The Slickee Boys), kicks with a fury like a more refined Dead Kennedys or Bad Religion. Rob Moss seems to be edging away from a strictly hardcore-kind of point of reference here, with lots of the selections on Now with More Rockets having the kind of gritty riffage to them that places them closer to No New York than straight edge. But, as makes sense for a guy who played in some seminal D.C. bands, Rob Moss's skills lend themselves well to making lean and mean rawk. And everything here at least has tremendous energy and a real clean-but-ferocious sound.
Now with More Rockets is out now.