Ohio garage-punk stalwarts New Bomb Turks have been at it for a dozen years now, and their ability to match explosive energy with witty irreverence earned them a spot on the Epitaph roster four albums ago. But even as some punk traditionalists worried that the jump to the mega-indie So Cal label was softening up the Turks’ relentless attack, the band took their take-no-prisoners attitude over to Gearhead, a label better suited to their exhaust-spewing, drag-racing brand of revved-up rock-and-roll abandon. And The Night Before the Day the Earth Stood Still finds singer Eric Davidson shouting and testifying so close to the microphone that you can almost feel the spit spraying as the band’s overdriven guitars deliver roundhouse punch after roundhouse punch of blooze-bent riffs and amped-up power chords on the likes of "Hassle St.," "Don’t Bug Me, I’m Nutty," and the saxophone-strutting "Grifted." The only missteps, "Leaving Town" and "Like Ghosts," are a bit mushy, straying toward strident rock balladry. But the disc has more than enough hard-hitting hooks and anti-social tendencies to make up for a couple of soft spots.