The Hot Rollers choose not to play the Cute Card. You know , the dimpled cuteness Tee-hee-giggle-“Can someone tune my guitar cuz I’m a fragile unicorn princess” act that too often nets girl bands undue attention. We should all be grateful that the Hot Rollers would rather start a grease fire in their amps and rock the Jell-o wrestling party like they’re angling for a knife fight with The Donnas.

The band’s MySpace profile describes them as “very sweaty/beery tits harmonizing with each other in a garbage can bra.” They rock hardest in Seattle’s dirtiest joints and refuse to clean up their act when they storm the more lauded venues. They’ve been known to scrawl set lists on their thighs in Sharpie. (“Nice pair of setlists” “If I compliment your setlist, will you show me your encore?”) If I remember correctly, Guitarist Lori’s guitar strap reads “Fuck” to Kirsten’s “Off.” See, a little teamwork goes a long way, especially when they don theme-apparel for events. Last Halloween they stormed the Lobo as brides of Frankenstein. They’ve also done the rollergirl and Catholic schoolgirl thing, but that doesn’t count as playing the Cute Card. It’s parody, the hotness is just part of the show. They aren’t, after all, the Lukewarm Rollers.

Got Your Number contains enough balls-to-the-wall girl power to light up a city. Stripped down and retro-sassy, listen for that 1960’s influence of engineer Kearney Barton, a music legend who recorded the Sonics, Ventures, and the Kingsmen's “Louie Louie.”. The end result is what you might imagine a monster movie soundtrack would sound like if it was made by go-go dancers in knee-high white boots. There are power chords, punk riffs, and the lyrics preach having power in relationships while not glossing over past mistakes, usually involving young boys, cars, and alcohol. Flirting with a little axel grease behind the ears and a wrench in the back pocket

Check out this lyric from the title track - “I was a single girl/ I had double vision/ He gave me three steps baby/ ‘Til I was four on the floor/ I got a five finger discount/ On a fifth of Jack”

Other highlights include a sloppy, screamy cover of Billy Joel’s “You May Be Right,” and a lambasting of the aforementioned pretty-pretty-princess girls on “Ice Princess.”

While a sizzling and impassioned debut, chances are that the girls will need to push future recording sessions into more creative territory if they want to pull down some serious radio time and differentiate their songs. But in the meantime, it’s all about the live show. Hide your girlfriend and wear a jockstrap. This could get ugly. - (8/10) (0) Comments