When’s the last time you heard a truly good pop punk album?

When Roxy Gunn Project (which is still an active entity as a fun cover band on a near weekly basis here in Las Vegas) morphed into Crimson Riot, the trio of guitarist/vocalist Roxy Gunn, bassist/vocalist Reverend Chris Reject, and drummer Ryan J, many were curious as to what was going to come of it.

In just a year and a half, we now have their 1st full length album, they’ve won the debut season of “Who Will Rock You” (which included a grand prize of $25,000 and playing in Vegas and Nashville), and have been building up their fanbase.

33 minutes of emotionally charged, at times sarcastic, anthemic, skank-ready tunes. Roxy and Chris switch off on lead vocals throughout the album, which adds a unique but very natural dynamic. There’s as much melody as there is attitude. It’s not so much aggression as it is the tone within the lyrics that make it so. Most importantly, it’s just fun.

Absolutely any fan of Goldfinger, Bad Religion, Tsunami Bomb, older Green Day, Rancid, Sublime, old No Doubt, or NoFx (minus the drama) should easily be able to sink their teeth into this. Or just imagine a very polished Distillers? Speaking of which, the production is simply perfect. It’s no more and no less than exactly how it should sound.

My personal favorite tunes include “The Ballad of Dr. Chop”, “I’m Not Punk”, “Lost Souls”, and “Here’s The Bad News Laura (The Shake Machine is Down)”, but make no mistake… there’s not a bad song. Because “Click (To Make Me Happy)”, “Down We Go”, and “Anchor Me” are right up there for me too.

I’m excited to see what happens over the next couple years, and I’m looking forward to more new music. Solid!

Rating? 4.5/5

Review by Marcus Miller

#CrimsonRiot #ClassyPunkForTrashyPeople #RoxyGunnProject #LasVegas