By: David Schultz

The Hold Steady have currently cornered the market on wry observations of drunken and debauched youth, a factor of Craig Finn’s dry wit and the Hold Steady’s collective personal detachment from the demographic they chronicle. A little closer in age to the parking lot set, Rose Hill Drive have unleashed Moon Is The New Earth, an album full of testosterone-laden, guitar driven anthems that move along on the sly pick-up lines and come-ons thrown about by bassist and lead singer Jake Sproul. While their recently released sophomore effort, Moon Is The New Earth, shows a slight regression in their songwriting it is a gigantic step forward overall for this young trio from Boulder, Colorado.

After the unqualified success of their self-titled debut, Moon Is The New Earth seems to have emerged with little fanfare, failing to receive the attention it deserves. A fine sophomore effort, Rose Hill Drive concentrates more on hard-driving rock and roll that reawakens the power trio tradition. Jake Sproul shows a increasingly fine aptitude for raucous rock and roll but his sparkling gift for lyrical wordplay and character sketches, a revelation on their first album, is noticeably missing. For the most part, Moon Is The New Earth is as a subtle as a jackhammer, the straightforward “Do You Want To Get High?” the furtive “Sneak Out” and the cold hearted “One Night Stand” leaving little to the imagination. Fortunately, not every album needs to be rife with lyrical poeticism in order to rock and Moon Is The New Earth is definitely an album that rocks.

After catching the attention of Pete Townshend, Rose Hill Drive spent some time with The Who as their opening act and have benefited greatly from the exposure. Daniel Sproul is an emerging guitar hero able to expand and enhance the bounding beat generated by his older brother and drummer Nathan Barnes. On “I’m On To You” Daniel unleashes a fiery guitar in the mold of their current tour mates Earl Greyhound and on “The 8th Wonder” he bursts forth with a magnificent frenzy of thunderous arena rock that might be the best two minutes that Rose Hill Drive has ever laid down in the studio. For those who approach second albums with a sense of trepidation over whether a band can recapture the magic, listen to Moon Is The New Earth without fear.

Labels: Rose Hill Drive