CHINMUSIC MAGAZINE #7 (Nov 2004)

Wow. Really surprised by this semi-debut. The Rookies are JUST under the wire on innings pitched and at-bats; just enough to still consider them for Rookie-Of-The-Year status, a la Khaili Greene or Mark Teixeiera. They have been heralded in the San Diego local press for some time now; winning awards and golden handshakes and accolades and snacks. But if you've read the press, which mostly consists of comparisons to The Replacements, you are either put off by a retro feeling of nostalgia or you can't wait to relive "Tim".

Now here's the scroogie. They may be reminiscent of The 'Mats in some, perahps many, ways but a substantially more accurate comparison would be the horribly underrated Young Fresh Fellows. The Rookies have a lot of direct correlations to the early, non-Kurt Bloch Fellows. The country overtones, the witty and pun-ishing lyrical twists, even head-Rookie Adam's lax vocal melodies. Hook-laden, well-constructed melodies sync with twangy guitars and an overall roadworthy weltschmerz. Songs like "Elevator To Heaven" and the Cars-injected "After The Beep" bend and stretch like Willie Montanez snapping at a bad throw. Even with all the quirky bits and between-song dot racing, the tunes here more than bring the goods, forcing you to listen without a hint of joke-band prejudice. These guys bring the heat and savvy like Jake Peavy.
- Hack Scribe