Upon hearing such a clever name, I couldn’t wait to hear the band.  “What will they sound like?” I wondered.  Stripped down hardcore?  Or maybe shitty punk rock, laden with horribly offensive lyrics.  Maybe something completely immature, yet satisfying enough to blast through the neighborhood during a drunken blitz?

Nope.  As I should have gathered from the title of the album, “Dirty Pounding Gasoline,” it is nothing but straight-forward rock music, slightly polished and radio ready.  (Think STP meets Godsmack.)

While I have no problem with stereotypical hard rock, the Xheadz contribute nothing to the genre, save for a name we can all laugh at.  Notice I say laugh at, not with.

Offering up songs such as “Nitro” and “MotorJesus,” the album kicks about as much ass as Metallica’s “Reload.”  The only difference between the Xheadz and Metallica is that if someone gave me a free Metallica ticket, I might consider going.  

While the Xheadz are not the worst band in the world, the album contains enough uninspired lyrics, uninventive guitar riffs, and predictable arrangements to further dilute the rock ‘n roll gene pool in which we all slowly drown.

My prediction for the Xheadz:  After a short stint of opening for small to mid-size acts, they will still be unable to accept their own mediocrity and slug it out in the bar scene for another couple of years.  Finally, upon realizing that they suck, they will give up and become patrons of the bars whose stages they once played, sitting next to the alcoholics instead of annoying them.

The Xheadz will soon be reduced to drinking their weeknights away as they tell the same stories about fame that never happened, whining to anyone who will listen about how talented they are, and wondering why nobody else seems to realize it. It is only a matter of time before both the band and the record label recoil in horror at every dime that was put into this sinking ship.   

Best case scenario:  They could end up reuniting in ten years to play cover songs by the many other bands that their sound so closely resembles. 

Advice to the band:  Either crank out some tunes that are a little more shit-headed, or give the name over to a band that will.  

Listen to samples and Purchase this CD online
 

Fan Speak: