The Moog -- Sold For Tomorrow

Dude, Hungary rocks! The Moog started out in the relatively cloistered Rock scene of Budapest as Nirvana/Led Zep-obsessed teens (the band's bassist couldn't play an instrument but was so inspired by their music that he learned in order to be involved) and eventually found each other to fulfill their destiny as the first Hungarian Rock band to sign with a U.S. label for their jumpily joyful debut, Sold for Tomorrow. Rightly so, as the quintet incorporates the hyper-caffeinated pulse of The Strokes, the gritty urban Punk bounce of The Libertines, the Garage-stained verve of Hot Hot Heat and charming dashes of '60s melodic Pop naiveté and '70s Punk/New Wave determination. The beauty of The Moog's debut is that the band's exuberance leaps out of the speakers and dances around the room on every track, from the rafter-rattling "Your Sweet Neck" and the breakneck carnival Punk of "I Don't Want You Now" to the Beatles-flecked simplicity of "I Like You," the Brian Wilson roaring quietude of "Anyone" and the New Wave/Space Rock throb of the album's seven-minute closer, "Xanax Youth." The Moog delivers their goods on Sold For Tomorrow without a lot of self-conscious influence peddling, just plenty of good old-fashioned Rock & Roll passion and unbridled energy. (Brian Baker) Grade: B+