16 SECOND STARE ‘Red Carpet Material’ (Angry Tim Records) RATING: 7/10

By GREG MAKI

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.