If there has been a hard rock trend in the early months
of 2008, it’s been nostalgia. Airbourne’s AC/DC-influenced
sound is at the forefront (it is for me, at least), but they
are not the only band recalling the classic rock of the 1970s.
Add to the list 16 Second Stare, the brainchild of vocalists/guitarists
“Angry” Tim and Todd Pettus. (How can you not
like a band with a dude known only as “Angry”
Tim?)
On their debut album, 16 Second Stare doesn’t deliver
any unexpected twists or turns. They simply provide one solid
rock song after another, from the bouncy opener “Ballad
of Billy Rose,” to the mellow and melancholy “Stuck
in the Moment,” to the infectious title track, to the
Southern rocker “Better Man,” with a world weary
tone that is a perfect fit for the raspy vocals, to the up-tempo
“Smash” to the darker “Down,” to the
bluesy “Take Me Back.”
Searching the Internet, I could find little information on
16 Second Stare. Both their official web site and MySpace
page appear to be updated infrequently. I couldn’t even
find a store selling Red Carpet Material. For the
band’s sake, I hope someone gets it together because
this is an album worth hearing. |