The D4 - 6Twenty

The D4 might hail half a world a way from 8 Mile Road (New Zealand, to be exact), yet they specialize in Motown-approved Deeeeeeetroit garage rock, speedy and dirty as the "Rocknroll Motherfucker"s their songs are (ostensibly) about. Which isn't bad in and of itself. 6Twenty chugs along sturdilly, replete with the oil-stained distortion and bluesy howls their Michigan forebears made standard issue. From "Party" to "Get Loose" to (my personal fave) "Pirate Love." Yet the world already has a Jack White. And a Dirtbombs. And a Pattern. And a Hives, and a so on and so forth - not to mention countless imitators of each of those acts (or, might I add, the original Motor City madmen who influenced all the previously-mentioned dudes). This is not to peg the D4 as less-than-capable copycats; it's just that what they do has been - and still IS being - done many times already. I certainly have no beef with well-done, straightforward garage rock. You certainly have to give any band credit for just plugging in and rocking with the aplomb D4 spews on "Exit To The City." Yet with so many permutations of stripped-down, punky garage to chose from already, there's no real excuse for the D4 not to add something new. [www.thed4.co.nz]