No Trace Remains

The Violets “Co-Plax” – It’s hard to pull the Violets outside a few points in time — early ’80s Siouxsie, early ’90s industrial alt-rock, early ’00s post-punk revivalism — but the band triangulate their influences nicely, resulting in dynamic pop tunes with a thin, shiny veneer of flamboyant gloom, like an M&M coated in black nail polish instead of a candy shell. “Co-Plax” in particular is more sweet than sour, and its visceral rhythmic shifts seem deliberately athletic, as if it were meant to be the soundtrack to a goth workout tape. (Click here to buy it from Amazon UK.)

Envelopes “Freejazz” – Just so you have some advance warning, this song isn’t any more free jazz than Bette Midler’s “The Wind Beneath My Wings” would thrash if it had been titled “Scandinavian Death Metal.” Even the bits that approximate horn skronk are far too composed — the title is kind of a self-deprecating joke at the expense of the band’s casual indie-rock-circa-1994 catchiness. This is not to say that Envelopes are playing it straight here — the hooks are plentiful, but every other moment knocks things a bit off-kilter, particularly when the singer seems to be attempting to make it sound as if her voice is being played in reverse. The song sounds active, playful, and curious, which suits the lyrics just fine: “Make things happen…PROVOKE THEM!” (Click here to buy it via the Envelopes site.)

Meanwhile on Fair Game: We had Michael “Ben Linus” Emerson on the show yesterday, and it was very awesome.