“Hey, could you turn that down a little bit up there?” That’s not the type of request you expect to hear from a longhaired, pot-smoking, 22-year-old hard-rock hooligan from Colorado. But when the Straight hooks up with Rose Hill Drive guitarist Daniel Sproul in his band’s van just outside of Green River, Wyoming, he’s struggling to communicate over an iffy cellphone connection. His bandmates—bassist-vocalist Jake Sproul (Dan’s brother) and drummer Nathan Barnes, both 24—have discovered the multistation joys of Sirius Satellite Radio, and Led Zep’s “Gallows Pole” is currently being cranked. When the others grudgingly turn it down, the younger Sproul tackles my first burning question. I want to know how the hell his trio, virtual unknowns, managed to score the prestigious opening slot for the Who show in Vancouver last October. “We just made a relationship with them doin’ a festival over in England,” explains Sproul, “and they just took a liking to us and invited us for a coupla shows.”

Apparently, Rose Hill Drive’s raucous warm-up at GM Place totally inspired Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey, because the two codgers came out swingin’, showing what kick-ass, classic Brit-rock is all about. Sproul claims he’s a big fan of the Who, although he wasn’t even born until seven years after the death of Keith Moon. “I listen to all their stuff,” he says. –br>» Who’s Next is a fuckin’ great album.”

As if determined to kick-start its career with an equally memorable effort, Rose Hill Drive delivers blustery, no-holds-barred, ’70s-style blues-rock on its self-titled 2006 debut. The disc is similar in tone to another eponymous CD issued last year by a similarly new crew of boogie-lovin’ young Americans, Black Stone Cherry. “We just like rock ’n’ roll, man,” explains Sproul. “It’s what we know, it’s what we do. We recorded in kind of an old-fashioned way, direct to tape, with some really nice old guitars and amplifiers and stuff.”

No Pro Tools, no auto-tuning, and no studio tricks were involved in the making of Rose Hill Drive , which was coproduced by Nick DiDia, who has worked with Pearl Jam, Rage Against the Machine, and one of RHD’s fave acts, Stone Temple Pilots. The CD was recorded in Atlanta last year, although the band is from Boulder, where it was formed while Barnes and the Sprouls were still in high school. Dedicated performers, the musicians shared stages with the likes of Wilco, the Black Crowes, Queens of the Stone Age, and Van Halen before their debut even hit the racks. “We’re kinda doin’ it the backdoor way,” notes Sproul, “through the live show.”

Rose Hill Drive plays Richard’s on Richards on Saturday (February 3).