Call Mr. Plow "stoner rock" if you must, but before reaching for the bong and turning on the black light, be advised that this H-town riff machine cranks out sobering examples of what heavy metal was meant to sound like.

Plow (named for Homer Simpson's snowplow-driving alter ego) definitely takes its cues from old-school sweet leafers like Black Sabbath, but underneath the multilayered fuzz-tone attack exists a wry sense of humor.

No doom, gloom or demon tales here -- instead, benders, horny truckers and Taxi Driver are the themes of Mr. Plow's sludge-ridden grooves.

The band's most interesting lyrics, however, are in the semi-serious "Beat Down," from Plow's debut, Head On, which approaches classroom horrors from the teacher's point of view. "Teaching those kids isn't easy / They challenge you every day / It's a beat down from a smirk to a frown / Knee in the chest / They'll know who's boss."

While HISD may not approve of such material, Houston rockers were quite appreciative during the band's recent opening slot for underground faves Nebula at Rudz. Clean-cut guitarists-vocalists Jeremy Stone and Justin Waggoner led the charge with blissfully unified power chords while bassist Greg Green and drummer David Obert -- a ballsy enough guy to confess a love for Molly Hatchet -- maintained a flexible yet thunderous pace.

It was a loud affair that was met with heads bobbing and an occasional flash of the ol' index-finger-and-pinkie devil sign. Which is proof enough that good hard rock is alive and well in Houston, and that a band doesn't have to sing about Satan to raise hell. -- Mike Emery