Pretty Girls Make Graves: The New Romance : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Promising live band doesn't translate onto record with their second album, seattle punk band Pretty Girls Make Graves take a step closer to capturing the vim and vigor of their live show. But they've still got a ways to go. On record, you don't get to see peppy vocalist Andrea Zollo take charge of the boys in her band, and it's too easy to focus on her singing, which ain't so good. She fares best on songs such as the New Wave-y title track, where her vocals are more like chants - rhythmic and repetitive. The New Romanc excels when it shows off the band's skill at making organized chaos -- a mix of lock-step math rock and reckless, nearly emo-sounding punk. On "The Teeth Collector" and "Blue Lights," bass and drums maintain military precision while two guitars fire off in separate directions. These are also the most tuneful songs Pretty Girls have made yet, with unexpected hooks popping up on "Chemical, Chemical" and "All Medicated Geniuses." But on the whole, The New Romanc doesn't do justice to the power and passion of this scorching young band. Go see them live.

JENNY ELISCU
(RS 931, September 18, 2003)