The resulting album, The World's Best American Band, was released by Polyvinyl in early 2017. The band worked with Ratterman again, this time adding a healthy dose of arena rock guitar, '80s rock swagger, and more keys to their sound. The next time White Reaper hit the studio it was with the addition of guitarist Hunter Thompson. Recorded over the course of one breathless week, White Reaper Does It Again was released by Polyvinyl in the summer of 2015. Along the way they began working on material for an album, and recorded it with engineer Kevin Ratterman when they got home to Louisville. Just before its release, and with the addition of Ryan Hater on keys, the band headed out on a long tour with Young Widows. The band's energy and songs soon caught the ear of Polyvinyl Records, which signed White Reaper and released their self-titled, six-song EP in June 2014. White Reaper was formed by singer/guitarist Tony Esposito and twin brothers Nick and Sam Wilkerson (drums and bass, respectively) while they were still teens, and the group released their first single in 2013 ("Conspirator"/"The Cut"). Their next effort, 2023's Asking for a Ride, stripped away the pop and polish for a more immediate sound. Their first record for the legendary imprint, You Deserve Love, dug deeper into the '80s, adding more pop to the equation. It was a bold move and earned them a major-label deal with Elektra.
After a couple of releases, they took a step out of the garage to head back in time to the glittery, slickly polished AOR of the '80s on 2017's The World's Best American Band. The journey to reclaim rock as an outlet for ballistic fun may very well start here.The Kentucky rock & roll band White Reaper started off making rambunctious garage punk that balanced bubble gummy hooks with window-rattling energy. It’s refreshing to hear a clamor of guitars, drums, pianos and voices. It sticks to tried and tested pop rock styles, but adds a control and confidence of its own to save it from ever feeling too formulaic. It works as a pastiche of all the vocal tricks that get us amped from garage rock and punk’s heyday and encapsulates Asking For A Ride’s spirit. White Reaper save some familiar melodies for the closer-an Americana lament to be screamed out at the top of your lungs. Meanwhile high-school romanticism and a doo-wop influence rears its head on “Crawlspace.” In the same way that Tom DeLonge’s voice on blink-182’s 2003 self-titled album evolved from teenage charm to something more melodic and reflective, Esposito exercises control over every catchy syllable, with unexpected vocal cadences carrying a saddening quality over shimmering instrumentals. “Pink Space” is, by contrast, a morose pop rock tune, a mood translated onto “Heaven Or Not”’s “color made in monochrome,” which ironically mimics neon nostalgia with echoed electronic drums and strobe lighting. Not that it sounds out of place, nor does the left-field “Funny Farm.” Deviating from the love-lorn heartbreak, Esposito reminds us, “I am a cowboy” and “I am from the future,” on a roadhog motor trip through hell’s desert, featuring demonic hushed screams and Southern twang. Ryan Hater’s keyboards add a jangly synth-pop sound to “Getting into Trouble with the Boss” which, despite a midtempo number, gravitates toward a face-ripping solo as if the band needs to fulfill a quota.
But the versatility shows whenever White Reaper dip into other styles that strike their fancy. “Fog Machine” is the most retro of all, its monumental hooks delivered with throaty brilliance from Tony Esposito, which gets the backups involved for a live show centerpiece. “Bozo” is another punk ‘n’ roll throwback, making a claim to soundtrack a revitalized Crazy Taxi franchise someday. Funneled through fuzz pedals and a hair metal neck-tapping solo, it’s akin to Rivers Cuomo’s Van Halen worship, a jukebox rock record played with Flying Vs. The eponymous opener revs up before unleashing catchiness in droves. The band’s fourth effort Asking For A Ride sees them going for broke, leaving no noise overstaying its welcome in these 10 riff-packed songs. Kentucky’s White Reaper seek to replenish it while living up to their name: a bright facade for a rip roaring, flame-fueled brand of garage rock. What’s fun anymore? Where are the screeching amps, fists-in-the-air chorus bellows or power pop hooks-immovable objects once entrenched into your brain? Rock music hit all these tropes on the airwaves at the turn of the century, and it needs that joy again.
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