Now that squelching rock/electronic sleaze pop disco -- or whatever title one would want to give to the combination that covers just-after-punk touchstones from
Gina X to the Screamers to
the B-52's and their many, many children -- has become a constant in the 21st century, it's much less shock of the new and more what a group or performer can do with it. The duo
Warren Suicide's already had a few good efforts under their belt, and with their 2008 debut on Shitkatapult, perhaps the most logical home for them in the universe, Nackt and Cherie keep up the grooves, desperation, and choruses galore and make a heck of a fun record as a result. Starting with a killer cut in "Sometimes" -- the kind of song that takes a bunch of familiar elements and pulls them all together just so, building up to an explosive release and gentle coda that doubtless is meant to call parallel situations in life to mind -- the two hit the ground running but with some good variety to show as well amid brash numbers like "Knock Knock." Often the duo excel by pulling apart those familiar elements to find space and drama in turn -- the near breakdown then buildup of the arrangement on "The Matter" is a standout -- while the slow string section start to "Run Run" (not to mention the strings-only instrumental wryly entitled "Too Old for Suicide") and the twee rush of "Home," where everything tones down just a bit in impact while still keeping the same breathless velocity behind one of Cherie's sweetest vocals, further leaven the mix. "Good Morning Lord," meantime, manages to be everything from a martial anthem to a gospel number to a weird late-'50s horror/comedy organ soundtrack -- and even more after that! ~ Ned Raggett