Category:
Rock / Punk

Try if you like:
Jawbox, Unwound, Wagbeard

•   Spill It

I am going to stand up and say it. Hot Little Rocket is one of the best band's Calgary has seen for a while. The foursome had a dream to do an album with famed producer/recording engineer Steve Albini. So Hot LIttle Rocket saved their pennies from all of their gigs and managed to get down to Chicago to record with Albini. If you have heard this band, you will be familiar with Andrew Wedderburn's off kilter and quirky vocals which take a moment to wrap your head around first time. The boys have matured quite nicely since the first gig I saw many years ago. Had this band grown up in Chicago, Austin, or some other music-centric hub they would be household names by now.

How To Lose Everything is the bands fourth full-length since their inception in 1999 and easily their most thought out effort. The album opens with a very strong track called "Like Killers" that doesn't quite go as balls out as The Rocket is capable but damn, is it catchy. With the repetitive "Now you're upright" line sung in harmony it gets embedded in your brain. Probably the most complex song is next: "Do The Hustled". If you get through this one then you will be sold on "Cough Me Out". Then the thing I love about this band happens on "Spill It". They pull out some harmonies to save the day on what could have been a bloody awful song and turn it into a hidden gem. I think "This Decade" is a good track but could have been trimmed a bit (it broke the 4 minute mark). See comment on "Spill It". That happens again on "Let's Play In Traffic" ("God, Damn You're Always Right"). They get all frantic on "Trouble" but still make time for some great harmonies and fun. "Call The Wedding" seems like it may have been a last minute contender for the album being slightly different in tone but it adds to Hot Little Rocket's diverse bag of tricks. "Sleep Today" is another highlight with it's metronomic beat and cool, pop feel. This chapter is closed with the acoustic track "It Gets Dark", fitting. 

Hot Little Rocket's sound is a little post-punk but really they are pretty much just a straight ahead rock band with some pretty catchy songs. Hopefully they don't lose everything on this album and gain some deserved attention outside of Calgary. Albini or not, these are strong and catchy song. My five star rating may be .5 star biased but even as a 4.5 album, this is worth tracking down (available on iTunes).