POW! gave the world a gift with the release of “Crack an Egg,” a dizzying synth punk delight more honest and exciting than anything you’ll find in the Top 40.
POW!’s act has been accurately described as garage-punk-with-synths, but it also incorporates elements of psychedelia, new wave, and post-punk.
Forged from the creative will of Byron Blum and Melissa Blue, POW! got its big break when Thee Oh Sees frontman John Dwyer signed the musicians to his label, Castle Face Records.
“Crack an Egg” marks the third full-length album from this ingenious San Fransisco-based duo. I plan to listen to all three, but decided to give this record a fair shake by not comparing it to its predecessors.
“Dns” gets the ball rolling with an uptempo progression of distorted guitar and what sounds like a saxophone. “I’m absent in my mind, I’m absent in my brain,” hisses Blum, urging listeners to drift away on whirling waves of synth and a multi-layered solo.
Album highlight “Back On the Grid” hooked me in the first two seconds. Blue lays out an infectious line on her keyboard that could push even the shyest audience member to experiment on the dance floor.
“Crack an Egg” offers more catchy leads and steady, aggressive drumming, then eases off the gas with its fifth track, “Runner.” Here POW! nearly cuts the tempo in half and pays respect to the avant-garde. Older listeners and music geeks may be reminded of The Velvet Underground as Blum moans over a borderline creepy soundscape.
POW! ironically places “Crack an Egg Intro” in the middle of the record and creates a brief, unpredictable interlude. The next song, “Color the System,” is one of my favorites. It kicks the tempo into overdrive and tosses in a synth tone straight out of an old arcade game I played once.
“Crack an Egg” is undoubtedly a fun and enigmatic listen with its obscure moments, but those are the moments when POW! pushes its creative boundaries. Otherwise, this in-your-face combination of power chords, distortion, and synthesizers should satisfy your electropunk needs.