Based on the first two Zoysia tracks, it’s tempting to write the Bottle Rockets off as cold, calculating careerists. Knowing it’s only a matter of time before Living With War gets Neil Young drummed out of America for treason, the Festus, Missouri, four-piece takes dead aim at the Godfather of Grunge’s throne with “Better Than Broken” and “Middle Man”. The thumping rockers, both built on epic waves of guitar distortion and power-thud drumming, practically bleed Crazy Horse.
Nothing else on Zoysia rocks quite as grandly, but that’s because the Bottle Rockets refuse to play one-trick pony. On their eighth full-length, the blue-collar veterans serve up spirit-of-’85 cowpunk (“Mountain To Climb”), whiskey-misted classic country (“Where I’m From”), and Athens-issue college rock (“Suffering Servant”).
Zoysia isn’t without its missteps; “I Quit” and “Happy Anniversary” do white-man blues every bit as wincingly as the Ghost World bar band Blues Hammer. Mostly, though, singer-guitarist Brian Henneman sounds more into it than he should be, considering he’s been at it with little reward for over a decade.
The Bottle Rockets are at their best here when they’re pissed. The muckraking starts with “Blind”, a loping shitkicker that takes on racism and plastic pop stars. By the time they get to “Align Yourself”, which brings to mind Ministry’s Al Jourgensen fronting a rural Violent Femmes, they’re swinging at everything from Democrats and Republicans to teamsters, religious wackos, L.A. street gangs, and the Ku Klux Klan. Somehow, you just know Neil Young would be proud.
