Hank IV

Despite the countrified Hank Williams legacy the jokey band name suggests, Hank IV is all about bringing the swaggering, spastically flailing, hard-charging rock. Hearkening back to the rousing sounds of '80s/'90s punk, this quintet of S.F. scene vets has a sound resembling Mission of Burma drummer Peter Prescott's other band Volcano Suns, with hints of everything from the Fall and Country Teasers to West Coast old-school in the vein of X, Dead Kennedys, and Crime.

What elevates Hank IV above the middling fray is the band's ability to deliver punchy garage rock with snarky lyrics. Take "Mimehunter," for example, where singer Bob McDonald sneers nuggets like "I choked the talking mime, he died in record time." This sort of disquieting whimsy courses throughout Third Person Shooter,as evidenced by such song titles as "Melonhead," "Crime of the Scene," and "Hole in My Eye." Mixed by Tim Green (of the Fucking Champs) at Louder Studios, the album well represents the Bay Area. Loaded with anthemic tandem vocals and dueling guitar clamor, Third Person Shooter makes a solid addition to San Francisco's current rock arsenal. — Mike Rowell