Albany New York please step forward and bring those Mystery Girls with you please. I always love getting the NFT newsletter because I always know there’s gonna be a couple of new rekids that I need to discover and spin the black circles repeatedly and low and behold this trashy retro Rock and Roll record pressed all my buttons for the 70s glam punk n roll.

‘A Little At  A Time’ got things off to a summery trashy start and instantly I’m looking for my cut-off denim and turning the collars up to get down with these cool cats.  What you get for your bucks is plenty of bang in a 60s meets seventies sloppy trashy rock n roll way.   Channeling the thunders solos and neat backbeat sitting upfront in the mix.

With an emphasis on strong melodies and heartbreak lyrics about girls, good times, and all teen trash staples. ‘Lipstick Traces’ being a timely example of all that and more.  Almost drunk slur vocals subtle gang vocals holding the lead up and some awesome trashy guitar breaks whilst the rhythm stays in control with plenty of ride – it’s the perfect summer slam heartbreak tune.  Follow that up with a tight ripper that’s all slicked-back hair and leather jackets with a solid switchblade riff and gang vocals. then it abruptly ends because that’s that – done and dusted no point in overstaying ones welcome.

I love the hooks that bands like the Mystery Girls just get – it’s not by design or trying hard I imagine this is all they know and it’s like falling off a log for these cats.  A steady diet of Disconnected and L.A.M.F and some sweet records thrown in with Lizzy and the runaways for good measure. In isolation songs like the Dolls heavy ‘Chandelier’ are real dance floor party bangers but as an album the flow is excellent just shifting gears gently here and there probably just enough for the band to refresh their bubblegum and smoke a lucky strike no filter and back at it.

There’s a dreamy quality to songs like ‘Head On A Stake’ just like The Cry did but more Blondie with additional textures with the organ in the mix.  Further heading down that 60s pop mix is ‘I Like Kissing’ well hello! who doesn’t and I’m sure being in the Mystery Girls is not something you have to worry about, maybe walk around town with the album under your arm and see what happens, I’m sure you’ll be fighting off admirers with a big stick.

Sure a lot of the riffs are recycled and the ideas are timeless but they work and this record is boss.  All snotty and kicking ass just like it should.  To take this sucker home the band rips through a particularly snotty ‘Six Bends’ before signing off with the wonderful ‘Sit And Cry’ sounding like they’ve struck a deal with old nick to get the Ramones to write them one of those ‘End Of The CEntury like pop tunes and just channelled it ending this record on a particularly high note.

Top album I highly recommend it.  Now, where do I get one of those flick knife combs to go in my back pocket?

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Author: Dom Daley