Album Review: Danko Jones - Rock And Roll Is Black And Blue

“I don't really feel the need to solve the world's problems with our music and I think bands who are arrogant enough to think so can pretty much eat a dick,” Danko Jones once told this reviewer. Bono can leave the room, because a soundtrack to good times is what the straight-ahead Canadian rock trio specialise in. Whether those good times are chasing that elusive girl in a club or playing Dungeons & Dragons on a Friday night, they don't discriminate.

On instantly memorable Just A Beautiful Day, the frontman informs us, “I just want loud guitars”. No kidding – this record places them right at the forefront, just like throughout the previous 15-plus years. No-frills, sleazy three-chord hard rock abounds; riffage heavily inspired by AC/DC (You Wear Me Down, Always Away) and Motörhead, the melodies taking cues from Thin Lizzy. Throw in Kiss's rock'n'roll all night ethos and punk rock punch from new drummer Atom Willard (Rocket From The Crypt, The Offspring) and you're there. The brash, charismatic main man can back up his smack, though; few modern rock acts harness such consistently strong hooks, genuine balls and swagger Muhammad Ali would be proud of. That's why they not only get away with a song as shamelessly elemental and crowd-pleasing as Legs or poppy as Type Of Girl, but also I Don't Care's tongue-in-cheek cockiness, I Believed In God's mock gospel overtones and break-up anthem Terrified.

One wonders if the Canucks will finally get their due now. Regardless, that doesn't mean the rest of us can't enjoy ourselves in the meantime, surely?