Tsar - Band Girls Money

Genre rock Publisher TVT Records External Links Official Website TVT Records

Tsar (or czar) is a powerful word, bringing to the forefront power, absolute rule, total domination, and a moniker for pointless US government special task force heads (Drug Czar, Hurricane Czar, Appropriations Czar). So combining the historical uses for tsar with the current usage, you have people who are ruthless in stopping themselves, thereby creating a mix of emotions leading said person to cry all the time.

Most likely, Tsar chose their name for the kick ass rulers of Russia, who named themselves such because they wanted to be known as the Caesars of their county (because ol' Julius was so good for the Roman Empire). Applying that name to their trade, Tsar are ruthless on the guitars, of which speed and fury mixed with melodies is their calling.

The LA band, however, had been sapped of some of their strength after getting caught in legal jumbo with their former record company, which is why it has taken five years to release a follow up to their debut self titled album. It's unfortunate for them because it seemed they had momentum and a drive to succeed, but were ultimately derailed by politics and poor promotion.

However, they have returned on TVT, and have unleashed a new album in Band Girls Money, which is a great philosophic logic for any aspiring rockers ... the previous begets the latter, and so on (unless you are a girl band ... not that there's anything wrong with that). Band Girls Money is a half hour of fury that doesn't permit the listener to breathe.

Tsar's new incarnation (not that it's at all different than in the past) is difficult to pinpoint what they want to do the rest of their career. Is this a comeback or a continuation? Are they trying to be Buckcherry or a band presenting first hand accounts of LA sleaze? On Band Girls Money they sound more like a Buckcherry type, and that's not a good thing is you're looking for cryptic lyrics and an album you can talk about to friends. This is just a rock'n'roll party album, nothing more nothing less.

Despite the layoff, each track is rough yet overly produced, not allowing for any time to let the song develop or any background noise/feedback that would show they are having fun. It's polished, but it does not diminish any of their hooks or melodies that show up throughout the disc.

The guitar distortion is constant throughout, leaving the songs to blend into one another if the listener is not paying attention. The dentist drill guitar fills on the title track leave much to be desired, and little pause in between tracks entails one to digest pretty quickly. Channeling the Beatles and saying that "Mohammed is just alright, but he never gets you high" on "Superdeformed," the song makes you angry and happy at the same time, thus making you cry again.

Sleaze and grime are popular subjects, "Wanna Get Dead" and "Startime" could easily be a recipe for any LA rockstar. The metaphor is stretched on "Conqueror Worm" even though is it one of the cooler song titles I've come across this year. And contrary to the song titles, "Everybody's Fault But Mine" and "You Can't Always Want What You Get" are not homages. But this is a fun, rocking party album that will keep the people in a frenzy for 33 minutes and change.