THE RUMBLE STRIPS - Girls and Weather

By DJ Solespin - Eclectricity - 07/22/2008

I am possibly the biggest Mark Ronson fan at CJLO, in Montreal and maybe in Quebec.  I admire his production, his albums and his own radio show has been influential on me this year.  His playlists are practically musical treasure maps.  One night while listening to his show, he mentioned a group and played one of their tracks.  Being a disciple, I paid attention to the group name and the track.  Months later, the "Girls & Weather" arrived at the station and it is fitting that I get to review The Rumble Strips' debut CD.

Ronson's "Version" started me on a quest of learning more about the British Indie rock scene.  Names like Charlatans, Jam & Kasabian were new to me until I discovered Ronson was covering classics that most current Indie rock fans have known or should know.  I remember the day I saw the CD and how excited I was to hear more Rumble Strips.  Little did I know how significant that day would be.  I hoped the CD would be as good as "Time", the track I heard on Ronson's show, and that it would be an introduction to what is going on musically within the present Indie rock scene.  From the moment the first track finished, I knew I was listening to a future entry on my year end Best-Of-2008 list.

I understood why Mark Ronson will be producing Rumble Strips' sophomore CD.   They are the band he would have created had he created a band.  Their sound is very similar to what he has produced for himself, Amy Winehouse and others.  The emphasis is on a driving beat and brass section for most of the "Girls & Weather" tracks. 

On my first listen, I was blown away by the energy of the first half of the CD.  The tracks "Motorcycle", "No Soul", "Creole" and especially "Girls & Boys in Love" are so fast and furious that I was hooked.  I remember being disappointed that the tempo slowed down for the other half of the album.  My personal preference is for fast paced songs of any genre.  In retrospect, I realize it was good for Rumble Strips to present different aspects of their talent by giving the listener varying songs.

Rumble Strips were supposed to perform at Zoobizarre on October 30.  The street near the venue was quiet and there was no one on in front of the venue except for me.  A woman unlocked the door, opened it to talk to me, assured me there was definitely no concert going on that night and locked the door after wishing me a good night.  Had the concert taken place and it was as dynamic as the "Girls & Weather" CD, this review would have been that much more dynamic. 

I read online days later Mark Ronson had a talent showcase during the CMJ Music Marathon featuring Wale, Rhymefest, Daniel Merriweather and Rumble Strips.  I read about how well they performed that night.  Missing Rumble Strips twice in a year is truly disappointing.  To be disappointed about missing a new band's concerts says something about the band and their music.  Rumble Strips' debut CD is very entertaining and it is a shame I do not have a live performance of their music to add to this year's revelation.  Perhaps I will have more luck and fun when they release their Mark Ronson produced CD and add more music to their already impressive catalogue.

Tune into Eclectricity with DJ Solespin every Saturday from 6PM - 8PM