Boys next door have plenty to crow about

Rooster have a big, in-your-face rock style.

This is the Chinese Year of the Rooster, which might help to explain the success of a certain poultry-named band.

"In the future we'll have to change our name to the Rats or something," jokes Rooster singer Nick Atkinson during a promotional stopover in New Zealand.

The band have found it tough convincing rock fans of their name, which came about when Atkinson placed a winning bet on a horse named Rooster Booster.

In one of their first interviews it seemed like they were a bunch of shuttlecocks, minus the shuttle. But when it comes to young rock fans and radio programmers, Atkinson, bass player Ben Smyth, guitarist Luke Potashnick and drummer Dave Neale are crowing their way to the top.

Two of their singles reached the British top 10; now Come Get Some is climbing the charts here, too.

The band's rise comes at a time when the British music scene seems preoccupied with the 80s, thanks to hip bands such as Franz Ferdinand, Bloc Party, the Editors, Futureheads and Maximo Park.

Rooster, on the other hand, play chunky, melodic pop-rock reminiscent of Aerosmith - their shaggy hair is better suited for thrashing over stadium-sized riffs than coiffing for arty magazine shoots. They are also fans of the original stadium rockers: the Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin.

"There's definitely a trend in the UK where bands have a smaller sound and it's a bit rough around the edges, it's all about the song," he says. "We just wanted to come back with that big, in-your-face rock sound again. Even though there's only four of us on stage, we have a big enough sound to not be dwarfed by a stadium or arena."

The band are aware their style could quickly date if their tastes were simply consigned to the past, but Atkinson is also a hip-hop fan whose love of groove is best heard on Come Get Some.

They've also got a point of difference, in the rock world at least, in that they're a big hit with teenage girls. "The guys just come to our gigs to pick up girls, if nothing else," says Atkinson.

The band have cute, floppy-fringed, boy-next-door good looks to go with their sometimes emotional lyrics and heart-wrenching melodies.

They're not the hard, tattooed, rocker types screaming about the depths of evil - they're the boys next door making rock'n'roll you could play to your mum. One critic described them as "Maroon 5 with balls".

"Maroon 5 are massive so I'd like to think it was a compliment," says Smyth. "They write songs that you can't help but hum. Maybe they were just saying we're a bit gutsier. I think we get a bit angrier than they do on stage."