By: Ben Salvo
Rating: 8.5/11

Black Taxi are a Brooklyn rock band whose tunes boast a tightness of sound and of concept rarely found on the indie scene these days. Their neatly wrapped, stylish and deliberately cinematic songs blend the right imagery with the right nostalgia, resulting in a style once coveted by great alternative rock bands of the late 1990’s. Don’t be fooled; their form is far from obsolete. The modern sensibility Black Taxi found within the seemingly dated genre of surf rock proves that artistic taste is cyclical. They cite influences like the Doors, TV on the Radio, Cake and Quentin Tarantino, and they might consider tipping their hats to Pink Floyd, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Talking Heads, Camel cigarettes, pornography and Steve McQueen as well, because this band’s fedora-and-board-shorts niche wasn’t carved in a day. Tracks “Wanted Man” and “Pretty Mama” cannot be missed by any rock-and-roll loyalist, but “Swagger” could find its sexy way onto any playlist in America.