Fat Rhabit

For a band named after a slang term for a Tommy Chong-sized spliff, Fat Rhabit doesn't sound much like typical stoner rock. In fact, it doesn't sound like typical anything. On its six-song, self-titled EP, which was recorded in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the band plays straight-ahead rock laced with every garden variety of genres, with hints of Tool, Shiner and Hum laced throughout. The EP even opens with a haunting string intro, which will no doubt catch listeners off guard once "Flesh," the song proper, kicks in. With vocals that warble with genuineness, singer Joel Broersma sings with the soul of a folk singer tinged with an odd, scraggly sensibility like X's John Doe or Naked Raygun's Jeff Pezzati. "Brat" has a simple palm-muted riff that's doubled with cello in an Apocalyptica sort of way. Jabs of piano stab through the rock on "A Fool's Maron," while "Hold on B" even has a mellowed dual-guitar interlude that would make the dudes from Iron Maiden proud. Even after only a few listens, we imagine that Fat Rhabit put on one hell of a show.