Rochester punk veterans Jet Black Berries reveal Rocketfire Sex66, a playful glam-punk adventure released ahead of the definitive reissue of their 1985 album Sundown on Venus. Written by Stein and performed by new vocalist Sapienza, the single follows a space pistolero across the galaxy as he pursues danger, desire and interplanetary trouble.
The track lands somewhere between the glitter-streaked swagger of glam rock and the streetwise charge of proto-punk, with enough theatricality to keep its spacecraft airborne. Its combination of classic punk and power pop extends the strange science-fiction mythology of Sundown on Venus and brings forward the band's legacy.
Stein’s partner Sarah Davidson created the accompanying video, intercutting footage from the recording sessions with handmade hammered-metal figures. Rockets, ray guns and stars move around the wandering gunslinger, whose crash landing on an unfamiliar planet leads him directly to his sensual match.
Jet Black Berries first gained wider recognition through their appearance on the soundtrack to The Return of the Living Dead, alongside The Cramps, T.S.O.L., Roky Erickson and The Damned. Their newly remastered Sundown on Venus restores the concept album to the sequence originally intended for its planned double-vinyl edition. Populated by outlaws, Venusian refuges and creatures capable of controlling the mind, its non-linear story draws inspiration from William S. Burroughs’ The Red Night Trilogy and the writings of Aleister Crowley.
Sundown on Venus [Definitive Edition] releases on September 25th, 2026 through Propeller Sound Recordings.
ZR