Classic rock is alive and well in New York City -- Brooklyn anyway. Forget the Strokes, wayward brothers and sisters of the new millennium -- this is where it's at! Seriously though, given the renewed search for musical legitimacy that is seemingly taking hold of the kids, post-September 11, maybe the Brought Low could make a run for it with their old-school hard rock. On this self-titled debut, the trio delivers a relatively gimmick-free set of tunes, boasting ultra-groovy riffs and plenty of road-tested retro-rock & roll. His peculiar, somewhat nasal voice aside (he sounds like Bon Scott minus the grit), guitar man Benjamin Howard Smith has found himself one of the richest, chunkiest, most appealing Les Paul tones heard in some time. This, in fact, is the secret behind album standouts like "What I Found," "Goddamn God Bless," and "Hot n' Cold." The rest of the disc isn't quite as immediate, but the Southern rockish "Kings & Queens" has a feel-good, Skynyrd jamming with Aerosmith feel. And slow-grinding bluesy nuggets like the exquisite "Deathbed" and the easy-jammin' "Outer Borough Dust Run" (which crackles to life on a textbook AC/DC riff) make for a very nice ride indeed. Recommended. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia