Is It Hard-Rock Gem in the Rough?

When it comes to looking for the next big thing, is there any place more passe than the Sunset Strip--where the last big things were Guns N’ Roses and Motley Crue?

But that’s where Michael Goldstone, a principal of DreamWorks Records, found his first signing for the company: Buckcherry, a band with a sound that harks back to the Strip’s ‘80s glory.

That may sound crazy in a time when hip-hop rules pop music culture. But Goldstone has made a couple of “crazy” signings before. When the world was listening to Guns N’ Roses, he headed to Seattle for PolyGram and signed Mother Love Bone--a band that eventually became Pearl Jam.

He also made the deal at Epic for Rage Against the Machine, whose polemics and drive have made it a leading force in rock.

“The fact that it wasn’t an obvious thing to sign appealed to me,” Goldstone says of Buckcherry. “When I first saw a couple of shows the band did at the Whisky and the Viper Room, there were other A&R; people there. But it was the kind of band that people loved to go see but had trouble pulling the trigger on a signing because it wasn’t what’s going on right now. But that’s what the appeal was to me--trying to stay ahead, look at music a couple years in front of maybe where it is.”

So get ready for a hard-rock revival?

Goldstone, encouraged by the grass-roots audiences building for such compatible acts as Orgy and Days of the New, is hopeful. In fact, the launch of the album, “Buckcherry,” due in late March, is going pretty much by the old, pre-GNR book. The record itself is in a straight hard-rock style, produced by veteran Terry Date with no concessions to current hip-hop leanings. And the plans are to de-emphasize radio play, instead keeping the band on the road to build word of mouth.

“This is the kind of band that plays in front of 50 people and then comes back to the same place 10 days later and plays for 300,” Goldstone says.

Bob Bell, new music buyer for the Wherehouse retail chain, says this would seem to be a timely release.

“Hard rock in general is as strong now as it’s ever been, whether bands like [hip-hop-tinged] Limp Bizkit or [dark-toned] Sevendust,” he says. “This may be riskier, since it might not appeal to the underground the same way, but it has the accessible, commercial rock sound that could transcend the rock audience.”

The band is currently on a short tour of the East Coast and the South and will probably play an L.A. show shortly before the record is released. And then it’s probably off to Europe, with an opening slot on KISS’ tour being discussed. But that’s just the start of a long, long haul.

“It’s invigorating to work with a band that wants to be touring the world for the rest of their lives,” Goldstone says. “We just want to be in a place to put it out and start the process.”

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WORKING VACATION: Neil Young spent a recent trip to Hawaii writing two new songs that he’s now recording for possible inclusion in his upcoming album. The new songs, if used, will round out a set said to be more on the “loving, beautiful” side of Young. Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt went to Young’s Northern California ranch to add some background vocals to tracks that feature drummer Jim Keltner, bassist Donald “Duck” Dunn (of Booker T. & the MG’s), pianist Ben Keith (who co-produced with Young) and guitarist Spooner Oldham. Tentative plans are for a March 23 release, with a fairly intimate, “evening with” tour to follow.

Meanwhile, after years of talk, work on the first release of a mammoth archival series is really happening, with a multi-disc set of previously unreleased Young recordings going back as far as his high school days and including complete concert tapes on target for a possible Christmas release.

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NEW KID IN TOWN: He’s one of today’s most popular performers. He currently has the No. 1 and No. 10 best-selling albums, regularly sells more than 10,000 tickets per concert and recently received a record number of nominations for one of music’s most prestigious awards.

So why did Robbie Williams make his L.A. debut last week before about 200 people at the tiny Hollywood watering hole the Lucky Seven?

Williams’ success has happened just about everywhere except the U.S. But Capitol Records hopes to change that with the release in May of “Robbie Williams,” currently No. 1 in the singer’s native Britain. Tuesday’s event was a showcase to tantalize industry representatives, although also spotted in the crowd were such artists as Tricky and Cypress Hill’s DJ Muggs.

The alumnus of fluffy teen-pop group Take That showed a keen pop sense and a dynamic presence, with surprising depth and biting wit. He prefaced his performance with his band with some digs at his friends Oasis, and played six songs that fall more or less in the tradition of Elton John and George Michael.

Can he make it in the U.S., or will he be another failed import? Capitol President Roy Lott said he expects a long, challenging campaign to make Williams a star here. Williams, for his part, noted after the performance that on this visit he’s actually enjoyed being able to walk around without getting mobbed.

“If I don’t get big here, I have a great place to vacation,” he said. “And if I do, then I’ll have enough money that I can vacation on the moon.”