California Crossing
In the hazy, heavy world of stoner rock, two bands have risen out of pioneering actKyussto develop their own legions of followers--Queens of the Stone Ageand Fu Manchu. Queens gained the respect of the mainstream alt-rock crowd, while Fu Manchu developed their own cult of worshipers through small indie labels. Now on their seventh album, Fu Manchu should be on their way to grabbing more of the commercial rock spotlight; their clean, straightforward sound is spit-shined and ready for airplay. While not quite up there with Fu's 2000 epicKing of the Road,California Crossingis a big-barreled hybrid of sludgy guitars, mid- to up-tempo rhythms (with a couple insane drum solos), and frontman Scott Hill's SoCal-driven vocals. The album is the standard tribute toBlack SabbathandBlue Cheer. But like ex-bandmatesNebula, Fu Manchu addLed Zeppelin-like classic rock influences to their music as well. With songs like "Squash That Fly" and "Mongoose,"California Crossingis a well-fueled album that should please fans of that gray area between heavy metal and hard rock.Jennifer Maerz