How I Became the Bomb & Zut Alors Duel CD Release
How I Became the Zut Alors
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“The Killing Kind,” the opening track from newcomers Zut Alors’ eponymous debut EP, is a hypnotic, mid-tempo, electro-pop meditation that sets processed drums and crunchy synths against a prominent, bouncy bass line that suggests a mournful longing. Like those of new-romantic predecessors such as The Cure and like-minded influences Air, the song culminates in a single resounding chorus about lost love, resulting in what is one of the best tracks to emerge from Nashville in 2009. Other standouts are the upbeat “Lightswitch of Love,” which sounds like Vince Clarke-era Depeche Mode, and the anomalous “Cheers,” a ballad that takes a cue or two from The Flaming Lips’ “Yoshimi” and would sound more at home on Beck’s Mutations than on New Order’s Substance. Headliners How I Became the Bomb are releasing their debut full-length Deadly Art, which is really a deluxe physical edition of the digital-only EPs they’ve unleashed over the course of this year. Including an additional four tracks, Deadly Art encapsulates The Bomb’s entire post-Let’s Go cannon. HIBTB tackle the guitar/synth-pop idiom with a pathological love and dedication that is sincere and unapologetic, and their idiosyncratic quirkiness—the backbone of their popular energetic live show—boldly shines through on record just as it does on the stage.
Sat., Aug. 8, 9 p.m., 2009
Sat., Aug. 8, 9 p.m., 2009
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