Michael Monroe
Sensory Overdrive
Universal/Spinefarm

Without getting bogged down by the finer points of the multi-page CV that details the history, talent, and accomplishments of each one of the members that make up Michael Monroe’s new super-backing band, it can be said that the Hanoi Rocks frontman has never surrounded himself with such an awesome cast in his entire solo career. With Sammi Yaffa (Hanoi Rocks) on bass, Ginger (The Wildhearts) and Steve Conte (New York Dolls) on guitar, and Karl Rockfist on drums, Monroe has taken care to assemble an ensemble that thrives on friendship, familiarity, tradition, energy, pedigree, and musicianship, and the music reflects that enriched bounty in big, bold ways. Without sacrificing his signature style, which usually involves plenty of harmonica and sax, Monroe ratchets up the power well past pretty pleasure, making Sensory Overdrive a cannon shot of sleaze n’ roll that’s equal parts sparkly pop and heavy punk rock fury. There’s no doubt that Ginger’s sticky fingerprints are all over this one, his hook-ladened influence practically dripping off every riff and chorus like pomegrante syrup laced with arsenic, but it’s the band’s chemistry, punctuated by Monroe’s familiar Norwegian rasp, that pushes this one into the red. Sensory Overdrive is full of so many eyelined hits it’ll make your head spin, and while it does an amazing job of playing to your old school sensibilities, it also stands up as compellingly current. Oh, and bonus points (as if it needed any) for bringing in Lucinda Williams (“Gone Baby Gone”) and Lemmy (“Debauchery as a Fine Art”) to help make this album even more special.

Check out the video for “’78″ from Sensory Overdrive!

The Main Street Gospel
Love Will Have Her Revenge
Tee Pee

Blowin’ in on the winds of yesteryear is The Main Street Gospel, a country-psych band with ties to Brian Jonestown Massacre and a sound so steeped in nostalgia and tradition you gotta blow the dust off of it just to discover the true treasure it really is. Love Will Have Her Revenge, the Ohio trio’s debut, is a laid back approach to the usual foot-stomp of mustache rock, and gets its point across by way of delicate pop melodies, tin cup blues, and breezy jams. While none of the songs here are exceptionally overpowering in their virility, they do have amazing breadth, depth, and reach, like the thick roots of an old and impressive tree. Not only that, but they shake and hum at times with a journeyman vibe, as the longest songs on deck (“Fool’s Gold,” “Ready to Shine,” and “She’s a Disease”) draw you into a solitary world of lonely rural squatting and the hallucinations it might induce with their 70s-inspired freak-folk rock. You’ll be able to hear a wide array of influences on this one, like Neil Young, Wilco, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Dead Meadow, and Blood Meridian, but in the end it’s just good ol’ rock n’ roll — vulnerable, honest, heartfelt, and a tad trippy.

Check out  MSG performing the title track from Love Will Have Her Revenge!