After all the impotent posturing in modern rock music, hearing a band for once back its chic style with actual substance comes as quite a turn-on. When a group looks as cool as The Raveonettes, an equally impressive sound equates to a sinfully good album.
With "Lust Lust Lust," the Danish duo continues its drone pop courtship, this time supplementing hypnotic guitar lines with sugar-coated melodies and a wall of fuzz. Combined, it all makes for one hell of a love triangle.
On several tracks, the pair channels the sleaze of underground New York with Sharin Foo playing ice vixen Nico to Sune Rose Wagner's deadpan Lou Reed. "Black Satin" and "Lust" particularly thrive on this vibe - the gutter's never felt more inviting.
The corrosive opener "Aly, Walk with Me," plays hard to get, masking pretty harmonies with a coat of reverb. Though the song tempts with its lo-fi facade, it's the several throwback rock 'n' rollers that seduce most effectively.
Complete with letter jacket and doo-wop tinged vocals, "Blush" and stellar first single "Dead Sound" offset '50s innocence with obsessive insinuations. While cheery and vibrant, their neurotic undercurrents suggest that somebody's pet rabbit is simmering in a pressure cooker.
"Lust Lust Lust" certainly isn't an easy listen for the faint of heart. But those who give in to the subtle come-ons will find themselves engrossed in fatal attraction.
