The Human Value - Push And Pull

Hmm...sludge-pop - what a great idea. Combine the three generations of psychedelic post-Beach Boys pop with New York heroin-chic rawk and blend in eight parts Melvins sludge to get the picture. This scribe doesn't know if it is know officially cliché to describe female singers as ballsy or feisty, so I'll stick to describing Turu's nu-riot grrrl voice as grunge-vaudeville to avoid any gender confusion. This three-piece (although who occupies their drum stool seems to be entirely fluid) make a racket that could well appeal to trendy chart followers as well as trendy indie snobs. Grounded in a thorough understanding of the power of the riff, their songs revolve around tales of man-eating and husband-hunting frustrations and switch between no-nonsense head-banging whip rounds, soaring post-rock-isms and harrowing concentrated epics such as the magnificent closing title track. Like I said, great idea. [Ali Maloney]