The Ladies - They Mean Us - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

Following up on the global success of their album, Let The Bad Times Roll, legendary So-Cal punk group The Offspring their 11th album, SUPERCHARGED. Produced by Bob Rock, the record continues the band's legacy with some of their best songwriting to date and unmatched musical energy.

The debut album by Women was recorded over 4 months on ghetto blasters and old tape machines in Chad Van Gaalen's basement, an outdoor culvert and a crawl space. Sometimes light and spacious, at other times eerie and dense with an ominous weight, this self-titled album touches upon Velvet Underground, Swell Maps or This Heat while not really having any obvious precursors - a lo-fi masterpiece cloaked in layers of vibrato and guitar wash. Noisy and claustrophobic songs smash through junkyard trash brawls while others lift and soar across the landscape of 50's informed pop; a contradiction and an enigma, the debut album by Women will find it's way onto summertime pool break-in boom box mixes and the turntables of record store devotees.

The Coat hangers reckless energy from their half-serious roots is every bit as vibrant and rambunctious on their latest album, LARCENY & OLD LACE. But this time around we're hearing a band that's honed their trade and incorporated more stylistic variations. With this broadened artistic horizon, refinement of technique, and Ed Rawls' production allowing every instrument to shine without detracting from the band's natural grit, the Coat hangers' latest offering is easily their best record to date. Join the party.