Pretty Girls Make Graves establish themselves as a revolutionary force right from the first note of the first song on
Good Health, "Speakers Push the Air." This Pacific Northwest band who includes members of
the Murder City Devils and the Beehive doesn't settle for pop-punk mediocrity; instead, lush melodies spiral into punk noise and vocalist Andrea Zollo moves from sweetness to destruction. Along the way, whether tearing everything apart in "If You Hate Your Friends, You're Not Alone" or launching an anthem with "Sad Girls por Vida," Zollo establishes herself as one of the heirs to the candy-coated teen angst of
Poly Styrene. Meanwhile, the band evokes everything from
Bikini Kill to
Sleater-Kinney to
Modest Mouse (check "The Get a Way") to
Gang of Four ("Ghosts in the Radio"). There's even a little
At the Drive-In on songs like "More Sweet Soul," and it wouldn't be surprising if
Pretty Girls Make Graves found similar, not to mention worthy, acclaim. ~ Charles Spano