In the Whale

There's a lot of Eagles of Death Metal influence happening here. In the first two songs alone — one called "Woman" and the other "34-28-32," detailing her ideal measurements — In the Whale's Eric Riley and Nate Valdez take on the brazen, balls-out machismo of bands like Queens of the Stone Age with the nerdy ambition of a pre-bloated Weezer. Propelled by a wall of guitar and sandwiched between Darkness-level falsetto and raucous stadium drums, the lyrics are part caveman, part country boy and overtly rock star. In the end, the guys split the difference, like a Wolfmother you can still take seriously. They might be only a step or two from the garage, but these are two bespectacled escapists who rock out with their cocks (and maybe their calculators) out.