You just had to know that the wall-of-angst that was nu-metal had to have a short shelf-life. To be honest, at the height of nu-rock (when I would turn on the radio and find nothing but low-tuned riff-o-mania and flappin' uvulas) I seriously began to wonder if my days as a fan of guitar-based rock were numbered. Any remnants of blues were gone. Guitar solos were gone. But most important: fun was gone.

The first blip of light at the end of the nu-tunnel was the new garage movement. Sure, maybe the labels went a smidge overboard. Did we really need twenty Strokes-clones? Probably not, but I guess you can't blame 'em for cashing in on a good thing (hmmm...my MusicHypocrit alarm just went off, pointing out that I cut them no such slack after hearing the umpteenth Disturbed-alike).

The Von Bondies are coming in on the tail end of the new garage movement and they're makin' me think that the next big thing is going to be a return to rock: classic rock, that is.

Ok, maybe not. I mean, nobody wants a "Stairway to Heaven II" or "Karn Evil 10" (was that stuff really rock music?)...but what makes me apply that extra torque to the volume knob while listening to Pawn Shoppe Heart is the seriously fun and crunchy rhythm guitar. Cool guitar riffs were the foundation on which classic rock was built. To be fair, the Von Bondies actually lean more toward the early Detroit garage sound (Stooges, MC5) than either Led Zeppelin and Bad Company. We're talkin' some serious Detroit-ish guitar squall. And I mean that in the best possible way.

Now, while the guitars are going down the Search & Destroy road, the vocals are, well...perplexing. It's like the Hives' Howlin' Pelle Almqvist doing his best Ian Astbury imitation...with a Jim Morrison accent. Check out the surfy, psychedelic "Mairead" and you'll see what I mean.

While the tunes are mostly sung by frontman Jason Stollsteimer, the Bondies present a "what the...?!" moment on "Not That Social". Bassist Carrie Smith steps up to the mic and, voila!, it's The Breeders. That's right, if "Cannonball" came on next you would not be surprised.

Pawn Shoppe Heart was produced by Jerry Harrison (now there's a name from the past) who is to be commended for finding just the right mix of guitar chunk and in-your-face vocals.

Stick around for the "mystery song" at the end of the title track and you'll be treated to a garage-ified version of the soul classic "Try A Little Tenderness".

I'd like to see the nu-kids try to pull that off.

Only kidding.

(Pawn Shoppe Heart will be released on March 9th)

(First posted on Mark Is Cranky)