Rock is back. You have probably been wondering where Fred Durst put it and the answer, my friends, is SWEDEN.

Sahara Hotnights is a massively talented rock'n'roll band now gaining international attention, having emerged from the vibrant, revolutionary, and completely NOW Swedish rock music scene. With a sound at once recalling punk progenitors the Clash, the Detroit rock of the MC5, and hard-edged but melodic modern noise of the White Stripes, the new album from Sahara Hotnights, Jennie Bomb, features eleven tracks of explosive and addictively powerful rock music. Classic punk rock hooks blare forth from a tough young quartet who put it right in your face without a second thought.

The terminal boredom of their small town Scandinavian existence inspired two young siblings and a couple of local pals to form a kickass punk rock band before they had even entered their teens. A debut EP, Suits Anyone Fine, was released in 1997 to instant acclaim throughout their home country. Several years later, they released their pop-punk debut album, C'Mon Let's Pretend, which received two Swedish Grammy nominations and critical praise, not to mention massive sales in that country.

Their sound developed quickly and solidified considerably as a result of hard touring on Sweden's gig circuit. As they entered their late teens, Sahara Hotnights wrote new material, then last year, they returned to the studio and delivered Jennie Bomb, which will be their first US release on Jetset Records. Sizzling and ferocious, the songs on the new record represent the pinnacle of the band's blend of timeless punk rock basslines, hard rock guitars, and catchy but tough pop melodies.

Album opener "Alright Alright (Here's My Fist Where's The Fight)" captures the band's fierce attitude with its urgent new wave guitar. "Keep Up The Speed" is blistering punk rock. "On Top Of Your World" features an insistent riff and instantly memorable gem of a tune that you'll likely be hearing on radios all over town quite soon. "It's good to be back," the song goes. Now all in their early 20's, the members of Sahara Hotnights shouldn't be old enough to have ever gone away, but the raw swagger in these tunes suggests they know a lot more about the world than most people their age.

Another highlight on Jennie Bomb is "Only The Fake Survive," with its spiky two guitar attack. "With Or Without Control" spotlights the band's songwriting and melodic sophistication. As a whole, the album represents a new height in modern rock'n'roll music. Sahara Hotnights display limitless youthful energy coupled with surprising musicianship and compositional skills.

Why does it take four 20 year olds from Sweden to reinvent punk rock and sell it back at a premium to the kids of America and England, where the music was born? Maybe we should blame the men of the nu metal, with their facial hair sprouting from places that are just wrong. It might be a reaction to the inaccessible, insincere nature of most of the music topping the charts of late, but real, raw, electric rock'n'roll is capturing the hearts and minds of our youth. Sahara Hotnights has the talent and the attitude to give a powerful new direction to this cultural tectonic shift.

Having conquered their native country, Sahara Hotnights are gaining fans in England and Europe and are now poised to capture America's imagination with their original take on real rock'n'roll the way it was meant to be played. The diehard punk rocker as well as the innocent bystander is sure to have his or her head blown clean off by the power of this band

SAHARA HOTNIGHTS: Maria Andersson - lead vocal, guitar, Josephine Forsman - drums, Jennie Asplund - guitar, Johanna Asplund - bass