Trans Am: T.A. : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

It's difficult to tell sometimes whether this Washington, D.C., trio regards Gary Numan as an electro-rock guru or a punch line. What's certain is that it's accumulated enough vintage keyboards to make both Numan and Kraftwerk envious. On their sixth album, TA, Trans Am keep the irony factor uncomfortably high, while the songwriting remains sketchy; the formerly all-instrumental band has added vocals, as it did on its last album, but doesn't appreciably punch up the melodies. What TA does have in abundance is grooviness -- the Rio-inspired techno of "Basta," the Devo-esque brittleness of "Positive People," the PIL-like dub reggae of "C Sick" -- and a knack for re-creating the vibe of a New Wave dance club, circa 1983.

GREG KOT
(RS 906 - October 3, 2002)