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Usuaiiy whenever lthink of acid, I lhink about some bubbling liquid that Dr. No used to dispcse of his bumbling underlings or something that my friends used to take before a Black Sabbath csncert in thc late '70s. However, the band Acid is a completely different coneoction. Eating its way straight oul o{ the mind ot Bobby Kennedy, Acld is an eye opening set of songs. Strange, as lwas looking up info for Bobby and the band I read a blurb that said Robert F Kennedy cnce ailegedly said that he "feared his children would be bllnded by an acid attack." Coincidence? Probably. But for those tor thcse c{ yoi, *n* no',t are confused and think the Bobby Kenn-.dy i'm refenlng ta is the brolher cf Teddy from good sle' Kennebunkpori, piease pay attenlion. Do not get distrhcted anci somehow drive your girlfriend off a short bridge in a long, black car. Bobby Kenneciy hails trom a long line of infiuential locals that were part of New Jersey's iirst wave of iate-'70s, earty-'80s nunk rock His band, Chronic Sick, went on to become one of Jersey's biggest and lhe band still cornmands cult-like respect and high prices for their 1 982 release, Cutest Band ln Hanicarevinyl, on sites like eBay. Kennedy was the darkly witted guitarist who is besi known {or his no holds barred approach, psychotic comedy and three-chord crunch, a hademark that he continues loday. After the explosive deterioration ol Chronic Sick, Kennedy did what many in his position would do. He drified acr*ss the United States-winding up in that West Coast cesspooi us humans calt Lcs Angeles. and writing songs for commercials and movies. Kennedy scored a publishing deal with Arisla in i 996 and ended up in Atlania on Rowdy Records be{ore moving on to writing for the silver screen. His cornpositisns have been !n movres such as Sled and Zooiander as well asTV shows such as 6Si, Law And Order a*d Sex And The City. He inked a deal with Tom Hanks'labei, Piay'tone Recorrjs, in 2000 and has rernained a focai point on the TV writing circuit to this very day. He has alsc donned th* producer's hat for Captain Sensible, The Damned and Jersey Shore biue-collar rnckers The H*sy Outs. The overall fee I o{ this self-titied disc is one ol sarly-'80s punk, coated in Beaties sensibilities and hummable meiodies. lt reminds me of much oi the early work of the Heplacemenis, solo Lennon projects and'70s power pop sensation, The Becords. Actually, whiie on ihe phone getting his in{0, Bobby told rne he was going lor a "iesus And T'he tuIary Chain nreets CheapTrick'ieel, which actualiy makes serlse to me. Ever the joker, he elso deadpanned that they were reaiiy trying fcr that DamnerjYankees vibe. All kidding aside, Acid has dissclved ihe ilash and lrash, getting right down to the bone of this no-nonsense CD. "Dead" blasts out of the speakers wilh the meiodic grace oi a horde cf wasps, iulling you in gritty undertones, while guitars buzz and expiode with c0unlermeasure tact. Kennedy's skill at v;ilting shows in fiin part choices. Guitars run diagonally lo vocal melcdies while bass and drums holcj down the reality and thunder oi this dirty, pop tune. "Dead" wiil aiso be the first song to have a video {oui now) and will feature perlormance and studio edits. "Nothing For Free" {eatures bombastic, harmonized guitars grinding over sugar suieet meiodies and Lennon-esque vocals. Think "i Am The Walrus" meets "Left Of The Dial" by ihe Replacements and you are ali set. More muscle-coated rock and roll f lexing comes with lhe song "Jabberjawi' Fealuring nsychedelic melodies that wind around fuzz-face guiiars and chesl-thumping drums, Kennedy and crew show iheir iate- '70s Zander and Nielsen slyle weil. There is no listing on the disc *f who plays what bu1 I think i can hear ihe heavy, lo',v down sound of Frankenstein 3000 axe rnan Keith Rotn in the rnilhm mix here. This shsuld be one of the top contenders on the disc as far as airplay. Kennedy continues his pcppy punk lest of feei geod meels the dark side with "Life Drags On;'a lithium powered daymare ol love gone to shit ihal features the great line, "When I see your face, I wanna leave the human race.Teil me what it's gonna lake to keep lrom kiiling you. When I hear your voice it doesn'1 leave that much choice, jump in front of a moving kain is all I wanna do]What else could I possibly say? "Sheila' ivarbles out of the speakers with deep, reverb and lremolo drenched electrics. The band kicks in with Plimsouls abandon, with Kennedy playing the role of a suicide prevention gatekeeper as he sings, "put that gun away, put that gun away, you drama queen. Put that noose away, put that noose away, you don't swingl'He sunns up his feeling for Sheila with, "lrVhat I like about you is youte still aroundJ'One of my favorite songs on the disc, Kennedy is a talented writer that can show the lighter side of everything honible and he does it with a lethal longue-in- cheek style, a radical, compositional imagination and musicians that never miss the mark when aiming for the right feel. 'l'm So Gone" is anolher highlight of the disc with hs feel good, sunshine iyrics. Slide guitars i ia Flarrison cn lnsknt Karmalead into Beatles sing- along choral melody supporled by open chord voicing's and drums machines. Acoustic guitars supporl the country-tinged lead guitar work of Kennedy, who, besides Rick Nielsen, is probably the besl piayer in this crossover game. Once again, I am not sure who is playing what on the CD btn people iike Ciint Gascoyne (FSSK) Phil Cai\ano (h4onster Mrynd) and Greg Macolino (Chronic Sick) are all over this disc as performers, producers and other underhanded henchmen. Other mentionable tracks are the upbeat vibe of 'She's My Lady," a clever pop ditty combining the anathemalic appeal o{ Willie Nile's "One Guitarj'the melodic romp of the Beach Boys "Sloop John Bi and the loving lament o{ "Used To Love Hel' by Guns N' Roses. Wrap this entire song in a big rubber souled ball and toss il in the hoop. 'Wish I Had You" is yet anolher song that combines the pop sensibiiities of a Paul Westerberg with the tonality otThe Beatles and the wit of Loudon Wainwright lll. Guitars rip over the top ol solid drum work eourtesy of Jon Kleinman. The only thing missing here is go-go girls in cages.Think The Knack in skinny neckties and Rlckenbacker's and you would be pretty close to the money. Great pop song tilled with contemporary produclion. Acrd is a firsi class offering from Kennedyandthe mosttargeted I have seen in several years. Acldis delinitely something major labels should be stopping to lislen to as they fast- iorward through this year's batch of Rihanna and Lady Gaga clones.The dark, Lennon-ish rebelvibe is some of the greatest power poplpunk out there today and besides the {act that ldid not playon it, there is nothing to hate about it whatsoever. For further information about Aci4 head on over to Main Man Records (mainmanrecords.com) and start asking questions. ACIr} )i. RORT{ .,
