The Celibate Rifles arrived on the Australian music scene in 1978 (named with a nod or jab to the
Sex Pistols), and quickly cornered the sound that would become known a decade later as grunge. They lived through and survived the post-
Nirvana explosion and still continue on their chosen path armed with a double-barrel electric guitar attack -- aka
Kent Steedman and
Dave Morris -- along with the satiric prowess of vocalist/lyricist
Damien Lovelock. The self-deprecatingly titled 2004 album,
Beyond Respect, finds the
Rifles sticking to their guns and all the better for it. From the chunky first notes of "You Won't Love Me," you're in familiar territory.
Lovelock's witty lyrics pounce on the group's native Australia, as in "(We've All Moved To) Buttland," and also take on a certain U.S. President in "Return of the Creature with the Atom Brain," both accessibly acerbic and hummable with muscular riffs. It's no small feat that
Lovelock's vocals manage to echo the distinct mannerisms of both
Iggy Pop and
Jim Morrison while still sounding original. Other highlights include the sarcastic "Salute," the band's second stab at illustrating the classic
Lawrence Ferlinghetti poem they originally recorded in 1984 as "Thank You America," where
Lovelock's droll delivery of the still potent words underline the timeless power of the band. A few stragglers manage to sound like recycled material without the currency of "Salute," and fail to excite. Still, the
Rifles' guitars growl with expected dexterity. For a band on its 15th album in nearly a quarter of a century, they manage to administer to their small but fervent audience. If not a masterpiece -- it may be too late for yet another one -- still a solid, entertaining and intelligent 50 minutes of modern rock & roll.