Album Notes

allmusic.com- october 2005

Aluminum Babe have a lot going for them on this album.
Led by singer and guitarist Anna, who comes off sounding like Björk in love with the Cranberries or Controller Controller, the group nail the dance-fuelled, disco-tinted lead off song "I Don't Wanna Be Loved."
The song works in large part to Anna's excellent lilt and slight accent, but it also shines thanks to the tight, winding rhythm section of bassist Jorge Musa and the hi-hat frenzy from drummer Darren Fried.

Think of an early Pulp song and you get the gist of this new look at retro-new wave pop. This well-crafted niche is explored on the French-sung "Upside Down" with its great bass line and groove that attacks one's hips or head, causing either or both to swing immediately as Anna sings about having to stop your emotions in English later on, á la early Blondie.

There are several quality songs that bring to mind the Concretes or Feist, particularly during the bouncy, frantic, and criminally infectious "Little Girl" that is short but terribly sweet. However, even this nugget pales compared to the stellar "Not 2 Easy 2 Forget" which, well, isn't easy to forget at all. Starting slow á la the Cure before picking up a heap of "grrl" punk steam, the song resembles something
Shout Out Louds might consider churning out.

The band gives a grittier performance on the minimal, mid-tempo but catchy What Is What that relies on the vocals
and a simple guitar riff to carry the tune. This tone continues, showing a different shade of the band on the sparse, tension-builder Dream Dancing that sounds like it came out of the late disco era.
After a folksy-meets-Celtic attempt during Baby Bitch, the new wave, art pop flavor returns on "Standing and Waving Goodbye." A true surprise is the garage rock feel of the Strokes heard throughout Disease Contagous but the rowdy, punk cover of Plastique Bertrand's "Ca Plane Pour Moi" manages to even top it.