Posing a good question about Apollo 440, “Are we a rock band or what..?” is the first track on their third release. Apollo 440 takes elements of electronic drum and bass, rock guitars, and everything in between, to spit out what the future of music, or rock music, might be. Gettin’ High On Your Own Supply has the potential to be an early smash success in this new millennium. It’s damn catchy and not so electronic that it will scare away rock fans. On the other hand, it’s not so rock that it will ward off the tech heads.
The first single, “Stop The Rock”, is giving radio stations across the country a refreshing playing alternative to Fatboy Slim’s “The Rockafeller Shank”. If Brain Wilson of the Beach Boys were able to produce a techno record, I think “Stop The Rock” is what he would have envisioned. With its surf melodies, rock-n-roll mentality, and bodacious organ, the song comes together as a catchy dance bit. Other early recognition the band has received is in supplying “Cold Rock The Mic” for Playstation’s bestseller, Gran Turismo 2. The drive of the song seems to match up well with the fast action racing game.
One of the themes I got from this record is the band’s ability to perfectly capture the soundtrack for space odysseys. “Lost in Space (Theme)”, “For Forty Days”, “The Ghost Machine In The Ghost”, and “The Perfect Crime” probe the outer limits of unknown space. “Lost In Space” takes the theme song from the show and puts in a metal guitar riff with a steady assault of drum and bass. They left the horns from the original theme to give the song a nostalgic feel for old diehard fans of Lost in Space . “For Forty Days” illuminates another side of the band, combining breakbeats with fluttering piano and airy flutes. The exploration continues as the spaceship Apollo 440 enters the psychedelic portion of the record with the trippy, mellow tones of “The Machine In The Ghost”. This is chillin’ music for all space cadets of the solar generation, to be sure. The album’s closer is a sci-fi techno thriller entitled “The Perfect Crime.”
I like everything about Getting’ High On Your Own Supply, even the title. The only letdown is that Apollo 440 did not dump in some of their past remix dance expertise. They have done killer remixes of Blue Oyster Cult’s “Don’t Fear The Reaper”, a handful of Manic Street Preacher tunes have been revamped, and there’s a wicked version of Van Halen’s “Ain’t Talking About Love”. I just wish they’d have brought the dance aspect into the recording of this album. Take the track “Blackbeat”. The vocal sample used in the beginning is crying for slamming house beats! Other than that, I have no complaints. This record gets the solid seal of approval. Get high on your own supply because it’s time to get down and dirty, baby!
+larry sarzyniak
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