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A classic party record from start to finish.
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MagnetLet's face it: Group Sounds is shit. But it's pure shit, which makes all the difference.... Everything is overdiven and mixed to within a decibel of ear-shattering heaviosity. It isn't just monstrous, it's gleefully, unapologetically monstrous. [#49, p.88]
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Yet for all its adrenaline-rush thrills, the RFTC sound is also surprisingly complex. Like Phil Spector's '60s pop masterpieces for The Ronettes and Righteous Brothers, the sonic density of Group Sounds is actually composed of virtuoso performances and subtle nuances...
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Group Sounds is nonstop, straight-ahead rock for the most part, more reminiscent of Scream, Dracula, Scream!, but with enough flourishes to keep things from sounding too monochromatic.... Right through to the end, every song on Group Sounds is solid, pure, high-octane Rocket fuel.
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MojoIf rock'n'roll is supposed to be dying, then these are exactly the guys we want manning the emergency room. [Aug 2001, p.98]
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Ten years since Rocket's first full-length, the sextet still sounds like they're on a live wire with an endless power source, as inspiring here as ever before.
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The variety of classic Rocket elements are evident, even more finely honed: bits of soul revue energy (Spector-esque backing vocals, tambourines and tight horn arrangements), songwriterly anthemic release, nods to classic punk auteurs, sexy South-of-the-Border flirtations with danger wrapped in a dynamic, snaky musical package and other frenetic new gems.
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Alternative PressAn admixture of Stax soul, raw-boned punk rock, and California beach-pop that sounds more focused than their previous outing, 1998's R.F.T.C. [#154, p.84]
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Q MagazineGroup Sounds is as good as anything they've put their name to previously. [#180, p.110]
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Group Sounds may not be astonishingly great, but it mostly rocks with the raw, excellent sound RFTC has come to own.
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Entertainment WeeklyAfter 10 years, RFTC have perfected their mix of muscular guitar riffs and bristling horns; it's the songwriting that's hit a dead end. [3/9/2001, p.82]
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Yes, it has a certain something that makes you bob your head and/or shake your ass to songs that you'd probably be ticked off by if someone drove past your pad blasting them out his windows. But no, it's not the stuff that great CDs are made of.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 3 out of 4
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Mixed: 0 out of 4
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Negative: 1 out of 4
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BenJAug 17, 2004
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JackGApr 1, 2001One of the best Punk/R&R albums of all time!