It is in the face of the continued ignorance of the 1977 U.S.
punk scene that
the Zeros re-formed in the '90s, all four members intact, initially to record old, lost material for 1994's
Knockin' Me Dead. It's not like they had nothing better to do. Guitarist
Robert Lopez made a fine living touring the world as
El Vez, the humorous, saucy, Mexican
Elvis impersonator. Bassist
Hector Penalosa made overlooked, nifty
pop LPs solo and with
Flying Color. And singer/leader
Javier Escovedo teamed up with his brother
Alejandro in
True Believers. But from
Right Now! it's clear this spirited foursome came back because, like the scene they sprang from, their music was just too much fun to die. Dubbed "the Mexican
Ramones" 22 years previously, that not-far-off tag failed to account for their other telltale influences: pre-
punk touchstone bands and heaps of
garage rock.
The Zeros make that apparent on
Right Now!, pulling out old covers of
the New York Dolls,
the Seeds, and
the Sonics. But the originals, including two redos of 1977-1980 nuggets
"They Say (That Everything's Alright)" and
"Handgrenade Heart," also blast with this Neanderthal, straight-ahead blast-
rock, so loud, raucous, and full of
rock & roll esprit -- the very quality missing from modern
punk. Like older songs from
"Wimp" to
"Wild Weekend," they still range from slow, sloppy, grungy
pop like
"Siamese Tease" to rasping, rushing smasheroos such as
"Right Now!," with
Penalosa's more melodic
pop bent indulged in
"You, Me, Us." You know what?
The Zeros don't care who's paying attention. That was the point, then and right now: they still seem like a secret, an attitude adjustment unchanged over two decades. Just yell "1-2-3-4" and they're off. ~ Jack Rabid
![London Calling [LP]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0887254469919_p0_v3_s90x140.jpg "London Calling [LP]")
![Never Mind the Bollocks Here's the Sex Pistols [180 Gram Vinyl]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0081227988876_p0_v1_s90x140.jpg "Never Mind the Bollocks Here's the Sex Pistols [180 Gram Vinyl]")
![My Aim Is True [LP]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0602547331144_p0_v1_s90x140.jpg "My Aim Is True [LP]")
