Sickly sweet, yet oh-so infectious, Fiction Like Candy is the music that one puts on whether you're smitten in love or just getting out of a relationship that had an unhappy ending. Their six-song EP Brand New Fancy Truth combines indie-rock guitars with pop vocals and bitter lyrics to form a concoction that deserves a craving. Frontwoman Genna Giacobassi paints the picture of a relationship gone bad with her wickedly sharp lyrics and gentle voice that goes from a coy whisper to a powerful scream throughout the six songs that grace the EP. From the kiss-off scenarios of "Joke" to the luscious atmospheric rock of "Mannequin", this is the perfect EP to listen to when feeling jilted. Just because the name is full of sweetness doesn't mean the taste will make you sick with a sugar rush. It's a taste of victory over a bad relationship instead.

Fiction Like Candy is a San Francisco-based trio with Genna Giacobassi on vocals and guitar, Randy Marshall on bass and Keith Sevigny on drums. Genna started writing songs and performing in coffee shops in San Francisco in 2004. If more electric than the first EP, Brand New Fancy Truth doesn’t withdraw Genna’s influence of Joni Mitchell in her songwriting – a young Joni Mitchell that meets Cat Power (circa Dear Sir/Myra Lee). That’s enough to lift up my interest for that new band that has built itself since a short time a growing reputation in the States.

I am a total sucker for female vocalists, so Fiction Like Candy's frontwoman Genna Giacobassi won the group points from the beginning. Fortunately, it took only one listen to Fancy Truth to make it clear that Fiction Like Candy deserves credit for much more than their singer's gender. Their music is bright and upbeat, poppy but not too sugary. The album starts solidly enough, with an uncomplicated pop number with an even more uncomplicated refrain. But you have to listen further into the album before you can fully understand the group's sound, which appears to encompass multiple genres and differs from most of today's straightforward indie pop or rock. My very simple understanding of musical genres leads me to call their music "jazz-infused," but take any genre classifications I make lightly. Whatever their sound actually may be, it is unique and makes each song intriguing in itself and even more intriguing in its differences from the previous and subsequent songs. Despite the differences from track to track, the group never strays far enough to make the album seem uncohesive. Back on the topic of Giacobassi, but this time with more focus on vocals and less on gender. Giacobassi proves to be the group's main drawing point, breezing her way through each song, not once coming across forced or contrived through the many styles infused within the group's music. She transitions seamlessly from the relatively soft-spoken opening of "Big Red Boots" to the jazzy turns of "Mannequin" and to the more edgy album closers "Joshua" and "Joke," the latter of which ends in a shriek reminiscent of a toned-down Karen Orzolek. At her edgiest, Giacobassi is vaguely reminiscent of not only Karen O, but early '90s riot grrrl vocalists, albeit with much less yelling and infintely more finesse. (If that doesn't impress you, rest assured that the comparison is based on very limited amounts of the album.) If there is any weakness in Brand New Fancy Truth, it's everything aside from Giacobassi and the multiple genre influences. Now wait, that sounds like a lot--songwriting, lyrics, instrumental execution--but, in the case of this album, "weaknesses" are more... areas that don't stand out; the songwriting, lyrics, and instrumentation are not at all bad, but are overshadowed by Giacobassi's voice on a casual listen. Band members Keith Sevigny and Randy Marshall create a more-than-proficient but non-overshadowing foundation on which Giacobassi builds. Fiction Like Candy don't exhibit exceptional lyricism, but again, their lyrics shouldn't be labeled a "weakness." It's often hard to separate "good" or "worthy" lyrics from their subject matter, but heavy topics don't fit with a fun and carefree band. Fiction treat the subjects they do address with striking imagery, such as "When she finally came, she looked man-made to him / Soaked with rain her mouth was cemented shut - a long red cut" in the song "Mannequin." Many of the groups's lyrics, including those in the aforementioned song (the subject matter is clearer if you view the lyrics), deal with love, most often gone wrong. Even with the overall solidity of the group in all areas, nothing about Fiction Like Candy absolutey strikes me. I imagine this is the sort of group some of you will absolutely hate, many of you will enjoy on occasion, as I suspect I will, and a few of you will completely love. I don't see Brand new Fancy Truth working its way into constant rotation, but I know it is something I will definitely revisit in the future. And I suggest you give the group a chance, just in case you are one of the few who will completely love them.

Unfortunately, a lot of bands that fall under the genre of 'indie/pop/rock' end up sounding too similar, and then eventually, they blend together in my mind. Fiction Like Candy will never really have that problem. This group has the great sultry voice of Genna Giacobassi. Genna along with bassist Randy Marshall and drummer Keith Sevigny will definitely leave an indelible print on your musical mind with their fun and soothing songs. Fiction Like Candy are going to be a band to watch in 2007.