Hot for Crime plays timeless rock ‘n’ roll music – guitar, bass, and drums – in the classic tradition, equally influenced by the ‘60s and ‘70s greats, all the way up to the modern day, with buzzsaw guitars and melodic choruses. Their debut album meant to be played loud, preferably on your car stereo, with the top down, as you speed along L.A.’s fabled Sunset Strip, where they fit right in.
The band formed in 2022, in Venice Beach –where lead singer Mick reconnected with his childhood friend, bassist Paul O’Malley, to launch what would become Hot for Crime. The group was named by Mick after a 1955 French novel about the feverish passion of a criminal being released from prison, arriving in Paris with $5 and ready to cause havoc. With the addition of rhythm guitarist Chris Purvis, then lead guitarist Miles Buckley (son of Journey’s Neal) and drummer Danny Thompson, who has played with both Scott Weiland, David Foster, Joe Bonamassa and Alan Parsons, the resulting songs’ propulsive choruses’ channel everything from the Stones, AC/DC and Prince to The Clash, Ramones, Sex Pistols, Pretenders, Descendants and Rancid.
“We all have pretty wide musical tastes,” says Patterson, who played in bands in Houston while working on oil rigs. “It’s an eclectic group with varied influences.”