Street Sweeper Social Club Crank Up Their Ghetto Blaster

Street Sweeper Social Club are back once again and continue to answer the question what would Rage Against the Machine sound like without Zac de la Roca. That being said, whether or not you like the Social Club depends on what camp you are in...Do you prefer the metallic street funk guitar of Tom Morello or do you like the screamed intelligent rhymes of Zac? It's a matter of choice because to be honest, both bands are so completely similar to each other it's almost as if Rage Against the Machine never broke up, they just spun off and formed new side projects.

SSSC's latest EP (and follow-up to their debut album), The Ghetto Blaster EP, is overflowing with chunky riffs, funky guitar runs and enough godly guitar work to make Guitar Hero 6 feature a special edition on them. Tom just lays down heavy churning riff after heavy churning riff that are so charged and angry they pretty much roll over everything including his band mates. His work crushes all in its path leaving behind a seven track trail of destruction that you won't soon forget. The guy hasn't changed his formula in nearly twenty years and why should he? He's one of the most prolific metal guitarist's out there and you know him when you hear his Abrams Tank for a guitar; even on The Club's amazing takes on MIA's, "Paper Planes," and the LL Cool J classic, "Mama Said Knock You Out."

While Tom carves the path with his guitar, Boots Riley continues to be the perfect vocal fit for SSSC. First of all, the guy just looks the part and if your name is Boots, you darn well better have that look in order to carry it off. Second, he's one heck of a vocalist; throwing out rhymes and lyrics in a steady stream but with a bit less chaos than you might expect. This is a good thing because rather than bashing you over the head with a heaving helping of anger, Boots slices and dices his way through each song with a surprising sense of melody; see, "Ghetto Blaster," and "Everything," for fine examples of this.

The Ghetto Blaster EP is a brutal record that goes for the jugular; it's heavy, funky, and refuses to take any prisoners. No, it's not Rage Against the Machine Mark II. It's something more; it's dynamic and deep and actually has a sense of harmony about it. This is a record that wants you to remember everything it has to say and it will do anything it takes to make sure you do; you'll walk away from this record with a scar so that you'll never forget.