Living Dead Boys
The band name and the artwork both speak immediate volumes here, the San Francisco quartet seemingly happy to lose themselves in the indistinguishable sea of commercial pop metal. Yet it turns out that the common denominator they actually share with all large expanses of water is that there's a lot more below the surface than meets the eye.
The immediacy of the album is commendable, with the likes of Bath Salt Party, Commit To Knife and the electro antics of single How2Kill all hitting the spot with quirky, rebellious abandon. The bubblegum pop metal works well when backed up with a strong song, but weaker moments such as The Present end up sounding tedious as a consequence.
The fantastically airy crooning of Cinema Veirte and A Little Light Conversation adds a twist of Deftones and even Incubus, immersing the listener in a dreamy alt-lounge atmosphere and Reyka Osburn's more delicate vocal approach, while the bouncing disco rock of Batdanse ups the energy levels to previously attained heights. The Queens-Of-The-Stone-Age-goes-pop of Undead Eat Lead and Psycho In Your Parasol further shows off the band's capability for diversity, as well as their penchant for sleazy hooks. The short, sharp shock of Fingernail Marks moves toward the barely-controllable post-hardcore chaos of The Blood Brothers, before Re-Animation unleashes a chorus so poppy I almost expect to spot it on the next Now... compilation.
Death Valley High spew out anxiety and carnival horror show pomp like it's going out of fashion; somewhat ironic for an album that practically reeks of sweaty PVC and hairspray. The cutesy, cartoon glamorisation of the macabre and the undead is nothing new in the alternative world, but is rarely done with such style and eccentric swagger. A few spins of Positive Euth were required to fully understand what the band were trying to achieve here, but achieve it they have. Modern, alternative goth-rock rarely manages to sound this edgy, moving between quirky rebellion rock and sweeping post-hardcore, pulling off both with ease and emerging out the other side with a unique sound and personality. The healthy dose of pop metal is a bit much at times and almost feels unnecessary, yet it also helps to maintain the hooks and, given a chance, draws you into the insatiable freak show.
Overall a difficult band to describe, Death Valley High spew out a huge mix of sounds and ideas, and for the most part manage to hold everything together to create what turns out to be a highly enjoyable and entertaining listen.