Worth the Weight (Industry Proof)
By Brian Varney
I know about never-say-never and all of that, but I’m going to go ahead and call Worth the Weight the best album of 2008, even though it’s only August. The possibility that a better rock album will come along in the next four months seems remote at best.
It’s been five long years since the last RPG album (Full Time, which should already be in your collection), five years full of line-up changes, a couple of failed attempts to make the album I’m now typing about, and further failure to find a label to call home, a fruitless search no doubt responsible for the “Industry Proof” banner under which Worth the Weight has finally been released. Much more insignificant shit has caused bands to fade away, but not these guys. They come out swinging with the kinetic fury of “Right On” and its opening line “Fuck you, asshole,” which sets an appropriate tone for the 30 or so minutes that follow.
For those who don’t know what RPG sounds like (sadly, this is probably most of you), dig this: Throw the punk-rock energy of the first Saints album and the monstrous brawn of the MC5 together with the rock-steady R&B timekeeping of classic AC/DC and you’ve got a pretty good idea of the RPG sound. Yeah, those are big shoes to fill, and I’m not trying to give anyone false expectations of greatness, but they really are that good. And whether it’s the glam rock shot full of manic punk rock of “Never Fails” or the glorious arena-worthy roar of “(This Song Used To Be Called) Something Else,” the songs are bulletproof. Even the lyric-conscious will be entertained, as the band is never quite as dumb as you might expect a group of drunken hair farmers to be. Something for everyone, I tells ya.
(www.rpgva.com)