Today it seems as if every musician sets out to claim the term “indie” for his or her own, adding slight nuances to a hackneyed structure in the name of innovation. In their often futile efforts, they forget the roots of their sound come from deep in the heart and soul of rock ‘n roll. But for Raccoon Fighter, there’s nothing else but good, hard rock ‘n roll and all its implications of drugs, sex, and sweat. Like their fore-bearers The Troggs, their sound is based in loud electric guitar, hard drums and cymbal crashes, and Sean Gavigan’s crackling yowling vocals, reminiscent of the late great Joey Ramone. These guys are about to rock the socks out of Cake Shop in February with a 3 day residency – the show on the 9th has our #4 and #70 Best of NYC bands Turkuaz and Lily & the Parlour Tricks in the line up as well. – Katie Bennett