After losing longtime drummer Atom Willard, Rocket from the Crypt regrouped and refocused and came back stronger than ever with 2001’s Group Sounds. The band had never been so explosive: every song reaches a climax in which the machinery of the music seems ready to blow its stack. “Straight American Slave” and “Savoir Faire” were instant classics, but the album is impressive for its overall quality and sustained commitment to pure energy. It only subsides with the beautifully bittersweet closer, “Ghost Shark,” featuring the timeless piano work of Memphis legend Jim Dickinson.