(Rock) Flamin' Groovies - Fantastic Plastic - 2017, MP3, 320 kbps

The Flamin’ Groovies appeared on the scene almost half a century ago, their idiosyncratic blend of fuzzed-out proto-punk and tongue-in-cheek retro-rock pastiche sounding like little else in contemporary music. Their string of classic albums in the late 1960s and early ’70s inspired whole waves of stripped-down rock n’ roll to come: from power pop and punk to the revivalist garage rock of 21st-century groups like the White Stripes. With Groovies frontman Cyril Jordan joined by his mid-’70s co-pilot Chris Wilson and original bassist George Alexander, the band’s new album, Fantastic Plastic, is the first by any incarnation of the group since 1993.
Fantastic Plastic is, thus, surprisingly well-played and energetic. Opener and lead single “What the Hell’s Goin’ On” sounds like vintage Groovies—which is to say, it sounds more than a little like the Rolling Stones circa Exile on Main St., albeit with a main riff that’s oddly reminiscent of John Mellencamp’s “Hurts So Good.” “I Want You Bad,” a cover of the 1978 song by fellow power-pop pioneers NRBQ, revamps the original version’s adolescent longing with a newfound vulnerability thanks to Wilson’s older, craggier vocals. Even a relative throwaway like “Crazy Macy” buzzes with energy, chugging along on one of those Chuck Berry/Keith Richards/Johnny Ramone riffs that somehow never get old, no matter how often they’re reheated.