The Turbo A.C.'s - Kill Everyone (Stomp)

It’s been five years since The Turbo A.C.‘s released an album, and NYC has been cold and lonely in their silence. Fortunately, Kill Everyone was well worth the wait, showing the band evolving even further in their expanded four-piece lineup.

For those unfamiliar with the Turbo sound, it’s like Dick Dale formed a band with Lemmy and they wrote a bunch of songs while watching old episodes of Kung Fu, Sergio Leone movies and listening to the ’90s Dwarves albums. That said, there are some noticeable changes between the Turbos of today and the band that longtime fans have been following for 16 years. The addition of second guitarist Jer Van Duck allows for guitar interplay with guitarist/vocalist Kevin Cole‘s signature surf-punk-metal sound, as in the opening “Feed You to the Sharks,” where Kevin’s and Jer’s guitars alternate in the song’s intro. Tim Lozada‘s bass is less blunt than original bassist Mike Dolan‘s Rickenbacker Lemmy attack. Actually, the relentless Motorhead-ish onslaught as a whole has relaxed quite a bit, allowing for slower, textured songs, like the narcotic-yearning “You’re So Stupid” and the doomed, drugged-up title track.

Most interestingly, the lyrics have become personal diatribes of angst-ridden alienation as opposed to the stream of TV and movie references that were a Turbo signature. These songs deal with homesickness, recreational chemical intake and even lost love – or maybe the references simply aren’t as obvious. (Doubt it.)

Regardless, Kill Everyone marks an absolute high point in the band’s career, ranking up with their best work on Fuel For Life and Avenue X. The Turbo A.C.‘s are still the great band they always were, only more mature, introspective and streetwise. Let’s hope the next album doesn’t take another five years – we New Yorkers need our Turbo A.C.‘s.