The Bloody Beetroots

Rock acts dabbling in electronic textures usually follow the following path: 1) Incorporate bleeps and bloops. 2) Replace guitars and drums with synthesizers and sequencers. 3) Sacrifice your entire live show to knob-twiddling and pad-tapping. Italian house duo The Bloody Beetroots, however, are on the opposite track—instead of nodding away from behind banks of electronics, Bob Rifo and Tommy Tea have gone full rock-star, touring as The Bloody Beetroots Death Crew 77, hiring drummer Edward Grinch, and allowing Rifo to step to the mic while slinging six- and four-string instruments. It only seems like a fit of rockist compromise—the Beetroot’s beats are emboldened by Grinch’s live drumming, and the group’s 2009 debut, Romborama, has a distinct hardcore punk undercurrent running throughout. However, this is less the case on the 2010 EP, Domino (Spares of Romborama) Pt. 2.

Updated 10/14/2010