Alternative Rockers Hammer and Sizzle

Rock’s commercial balance of power now favors bands that can make a racket, yet also catch the masses’ ears with hummable melodies. That formula has long been the favored style on the punk-influenced Orange Co/ Long Beach alternative rock scene, and it makes legitimate contenders out of One Hit Wonder and Sublime, both of whom seem to have what it takes to satisfy the new mainstream’s appetites. Ratings range from **** (excellent) to * (poor). Three stars denote a solid recommendation.

**** One Hit Wonder, “Where’s the World?” Rockworld

“Tug of War”

Lethal One Hit Wonder is like the bomb pictured on the cover of “Where’s the World?,” the six-song CD that by coincidence has been released simultaneously with a four-song vinyl/cassette EP, “Tug of War.” The fuse is lit, the band is sizzling, and by all that’s just, it ought to explode.

Like Green Day and the Offspring, this experienced Long Beach/O.C. foursome packs the wallop and raw ire of a punk band, but it also has a pop band’s ear-pleasing way with a melody. Front man Dan Root, who established his punk-alternative credentials playing behind Jack Grisham in Tender Fury, has made remarkable strides over the past year, and he is now one of the most spontaneous, energized and downright fun showmen O.C. rock has produced.

The superb musicianship of guitarists Root and Trey Pangborn, bassist Randy Bradbury and drummer Chris Webb (two more Tender Fury alumni) allows One Hit Wonder to attack like a fang-baring guard dog, or charm like a frisky pup. This double-barreled release of EPs on different labels confirms what’s been special about One Hit Wonder’s live shows and brings the passion and intelligence of Root’s songwriting to the fore. Forget the name; all 10 tracks on these two records sound like potential hits.

“Where’s the World?” emerges after more than a year in the can, due to various business delays. A frustrating development for the band, but healthy for its art: The searing “Any Day Now,” from “Tug of War,” is Root’s wired, sardonically profane response to finding himself running in place on a career treadmill.

“World” isn’t a perfect record. The Robb Brothers production team, which previously had worked with the Lemonheads and Buffalo Tom, pulls some of the punches of a band that should throw nothing but haymakers, and sands off some of the hard edges of an outfit whose unrestrained live shows epitomize the brawny glory of punk-pop.

Bradbury’s expert high-range backing vocals can sound a tad too creamy at times, and Root, whose voice is a satisfyingly tuneful bark, tries to finesse certain phrases that he should have roared. Adding acoustic guitar strumming to several cuts was not helpful, and on the ultra-catchy pop tune, “Break Your Heart,” the Robbs seemed to be trying to miscast One Hit Wonder in the same mold as the more jangly Lemonheads.

Nevertheless, the band still shows that it can hammer, and the songwriting is, well, wonderful. The title track isn’t just another abstract environmental lament; Root takes the destruction of natural wonders as a personal affront. Ire and irony are his strengths, but he always maintains his mixed-up Everyman’s stance rather than claiming to have the answers.

A tender streak emerges on “After Her Disaster,” in which Root faces the daunting task of comforting a child following some unspecified horror. How much truth should he tell? How much should he spare? And why do awful things happen in the first place? In a memorable chorus, he reaches for answers and comes up with nothing, except perhaps the will to keep on praying for them.

On the other hand, “Tug of War,” produced by the band and former Ratt bassist Juan Croucier, does justice to One Hit Wonder’s honed, slamming force, with drummer Webb and bassist Bradbury giving a clinic in punk-rock ignition. (Bradbury, whose studio credits include almost all of the bass playing on the latest Pennywise album, has temporarily been spirited away for a European tour by Wayne Kramer, the ‘60s underground hard-rock icon of MC5 fame; Tony Kanal of No Doubt will fill in for him over the next two months.)

Root’s songwriting is again thoughtful on the Lethal release, as he captures characters who discover that they’ve been trapped by their own deceptions and obsessions.

In a searing finale, “Love of God,” he sets his fury against those medieval minds who would proclaim a deity so heartless as to deploy AIDS as a pruning shear. “I really want to be there when you meet your maker,” Root hollers on the chorus, coupling his finest ferocity with his finest melodic hook.

Setting aside Bradbury’s temporary absence, One Hit Wonder couldn’t be more ready. Roll over KROQ, and tell MTV the news.

(Available from Rockworld, 177 E. 87th St., New York City, NY 10128, and from Lethal Records, P.O. Box 14868, Long Beach, CA 90803-1414).

* One Hit Wonder plays a free concert Friday at 4 p.m. at Virgin Megastore, Triangle Square, 1875 - A Newport Blvd., Costa Mesa. (714) 645-9906. One Hit Wonder, the Crowd and Crash Kills Four play Feb. 25 at Out of Bounds, 21022 Brookhurst St., Huntington Beach. (714) 968-9800.

*

*** Sublime ,”40oz. to Freedom”, Skunk The gods of KROQ have smiled on Sublime by putting the Long Beach trio’s 3-year-old song, “Date Rape,” in regular rotation. That gives a fresh boost to “40oz. to Freedom,” the band’s 1992 debut release. The album holds up well under the renewed focus. As an introduction to Sublime, “40oz.” is more consistently rewarding than last year’s follow-up, “Robbin’ the Hood.”

“Robbin’ ” had some good moments, but its offhanded, frequently homemade recording approach didn’t always work, and it got bogged down in extracurricular spoken-word nonsense and other failed experiments that turned what could have been a punchy EP into a sometimes patience-trying sprawl lasting more than an hour.

On “40oz.,” the multifaceted Sublime creates an expansive aural collage in which reggae, rap, pop-rock, punk-rock and folk strains are juxtaposed or woven together in surprisingly cohesive ways. At 74 minutes, “40oz.” is even more sprawling than “Robbin’ the Hood,” but there is no padding, and the songwriting and cover selections are consistently good. (Outside songs range from Bad Religion politicking and Descendents romantic. suffering on the punk side to a reggae-and-rap reworking of the Grateful Dead’s “Scarlet Begonias”).

Brad Nowell, Sublime’s singer-songwriter, has drawn more than skanking grooves and the ability to replicate a Jamaican accent from his study of reggae’s greatest singers. Like such models as Bob Marley, Toots Hibbert and Jimmy Cliff, his singing is often marked by a plaintive soulfulness.

That serves him well on material in which the action typically begins with a romantic wounding and leads to balm-seeking via the bottle or the bong. But the album’s prevailing mood is more playful than downcast. While “Robbin’ the Hood” at times finds Nowell gloomily contemplating the consequences of overindulging his vices, on “40oz.” tracks such as “What Happened” and “Smoke Two Joints,” Sublime sounds as insouciant as an Irish pub band ready to toast another round.

As for the widely heard “Date Rape,” it’s a catchy, fast-skipping, ska-noir narrative that handles its subject with cartoonish exaggeration rather than harrowing realism. Where others might go for earnest pleading to make the case against predatory sexual behavior, Sublime does it by laying on sardonic black humor. It’s basically a novelty song, and listeners who like what they hear on KROQ will find that there’s other fun stuff on the album to back it up.

But Sublime’s promise lies more in its contrasting soulful streak.

(Available from Skunk Records, 203 Argonne Ave., Suite 202, Long Beach, CA 90803; (800) 633-4487).

* Sublime and the Ziggens play at an all-ages show Friday at 8 p.m. at Las Palmas Theater, 1642 W. Las Palmas Ave., Hollywood. (213 ) 957-2608. Hear the Recent Releases