Four by Four

Four by Four is the seventh album, gathering punk roughness, sleazy rock 'n' roll and memorable choruses into one drive. A 2015 comeback after a five-year hiatus, it reached No. 2 at home. The title reportedly shows the four members' solidarity, likening the band to a four-wheel-drive vehicle that can handle rough terrain. That the lineup hasn't changed once since the 1989 renaming is also this four's strength. The guitars don't over-decorate, pushing songs along with thick chords and short leads, while the rhythm section creates a lightness like running through a city. While keeping a dangerous scent, pop hooks sit at the songs' center. In a bracingly lean structure — nine songs in under forty minutes — it runs straight from the bluesy riff of the opener “Th1rt3en or Nothing” through “White Light District,” “Piracy” and “Wasted Years” to the closing “Walls.” So the intensity never feels closed off, and an approachability emerges that makes you want to return again and again. During the hiatus both Nicke Borg and Dregen had put out solo records, but the sound of the four together is another thing entirely. A record to recommend to anyone wanting rock 'n' roll's immediacy.