With pummeling drums,
Ramones-like riffs, and a coed vocal dynamic not heard since the early days of
X, the eponymous debut album by Atlanta's
the Lids is frequently exhilarating. The vibrant vocal approach highlights the disc's captivating opener, "Distracted," and gives urgent, perfectly succinct numbers like "My Girl" and "R.H.T.S." an identity that few recent punk groups can claim. Whipping by in roughly 20 minutes, these dozen tunes revive the buzzsaw spirit of
Joey,
Johnny,
Dee Dee, and
Marky while putting a fun, refreshingly new stamp on it that never feels redundant. Fans of punk's forefathers will no doubt flip for
The Lids.